


The U.S.S. Party Bus

by TARDISTraveller42



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Road Trip, Canon-Typical Violence, Crew as Family, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Maquis, Meet-Cute, POV Kathryn Janeway, Romance, Slow Burn, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-18 08:27:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 50,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28615083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TARDISTraveller42/pseuds/TARDISTraveller42
Summary: Kathryn is a scientist trying to complete a cross-country survey of flora and fauna. But when her team's car breaks down an hour into the trip and they are rescued by a handsome stranger with a dilapidated, but still functioning, bus...well, Kathryn is in for a lot more than an ecological survey.Thus starts the journey of the U.S.S. Party Bus, a Voyager Road Trip AU that will follow our crew from Indiana to San Francisco with only mild complaining, world-saving, and other road trip antics. Hop on board and come along for the ride!
Relationships: Chakotay/Kathryn Janeway
Comments: 80
Kudos: 70





	1. We Begin with a Breakdown (the mechanical kind)

The U.S.S. Party Bus

Chapter one

Kathryn Janeway was a scientist, an explorer, a friend, and a teacher. And today, after so many months of planning, she was finally going to use all of her titles at once.

The SUV was loaded up, beside a few last-minute items (it was always so difficult to remember one’s toothbrush). Tom, the driver, was strengthening the rope holding the GPS equipment on the roof. Tuvok, her coworker and best friend, was double checking the lights, emergency brake, oil, gas, etc. And Harry, sweet intern Harry, was sitting beside her on the front stoop of her house with an expression that was at once weary and excited beyond measure.

“Nervous, Harry?” Kathryn asked, nudging him with her shoulder.

He smiled, looking up for the first time in a while. He was only 22, and had practically asked his parents for permission to come on this trip. It was going to be a long couple of weeks, that was sure. But it would be worth it. She knew it was worth it.

“A little bit, ma’am,” said Harry.

Kathryn raised an eyebrow.

“Harry,” she said, “you really don’t have to call me ‘ma’am’. Kathryn is fine.”

Harry frowned, tilting his head.

“Is it okay if I call you Dr. Janeway?” he asked. 

Kathryn smiled.

“That’s what four years of a science degree does to you these days, eh?” she asked, holding his shoulder as she stood to her feet. “Alright, Dr. Janeway is fine.”

“Or maybe I should call you Captain,” Harry joked, standing to join her. “Captain of our SUV.”

“Captain Janeway,” Kathryn mused. “I like how that sounds.”

They shared another smile. 

The day was perfect. The sky was blue. What few clouds blew through the sky were white and fluffy. The grass was green. Everything was exactly as Kathryn had imagined it. All of those months of planning and funding and scraping together enough support to make this happen...and now here they were. Ready to set off.

Ready for adventure.

“Tom! Tuvok!” she called, gesturing for them to join herself and Harry in the front yard. “Is everything checked out?”

“I think so,” Tom said, settling his hands in his pockets. He was young, his face almost as boyish as Harry’s. But as he stood there, he looked almost exactly like his father. In fact, his eyes looked almost older than his father’s; wiser. The kid had certainly been through a lot in his 24 years. 

Shaking her head, Kathryn turned to Tuvok. As always, his hands were behind his back and his spine was straight as a line. Reliable, always respectable, Tuvok.

“Everything is prepared to the best of our ability,” he said. “Barring any incidents along the way, we should be able to complete our study.”

Kathryn gave him a smile and a nod. As she looked at the three men in front of her, so different from one another, Kathryn took a deep breath. This was her project; her study. And this was the moment it started.

“Well, gentlemen,” she said, “You and I both know our mission. We’re going to drive from this spot in Bloomington Indiana all the way to San Francisco. Every hundred miles, we’ll pull off of the highway, survey the plants and animals we find, and take our GPS coordinates. We’ll face hurdles along the way. We’ll probably climb a few mountains and hit a few storms. But we _will_ get to San Francisco. And we’ll have a hell of a lot to show for it.”

Kathryn met each of their eyes in turn. All determined, eager, ready. 

“Now,” her lips quirked into a smile. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

………………………….. …………………………….. ………………………...

Tom started the engine, casting a smile to Kathryn in the passenger seat.

“2,267 miles to go,” he said.

She returned his smile, and they were off.

Kathryn felt the adrenaline pumping through her system. It was like she was living in a dream, and perhaps she was. Maybe she was still in her office somewhere, lost in her fantasies as she awaited the call to give them the green or the red light. Maybe she’d wake up and this would all be a dream.

But Kathryn blinked, and she did not wake up. She pinched her arm, and she did not wake up. She looked back at Tuvok and Harry, sitting cramped between the endless piles of notebooks and water bottles and suitcases...and she did not wake up.

So with a smile, Kathryn determined that this was probably real life. And this was probably one of the greatest adventures of her life.

“How’s everything back there?” she asked.

Tuvok raised an eyebrow.

“We have only been on the road for five minutes,” he said.

His stating of the obvious was one of his forms of humor, a personality trait that Kathryn had come to adore about him. She smiled at the joke and turned to the other seat.

“Harry? You’re not too crowded, are you?”

“No, ma’-; no Dr. Janeway,” Harry corrected himself. The poor kid looked like he could hardly move, cramped as he was between the window and one of the larger pieces of survey equipment.

“How about,” Kathryn said, turning back to face forward, “every time we stop to make a survey, we’ll swap who gets the passenger seat?”

Tuvok tilted his head.

“I believe that would have a positive effect on morale.”

Kathryn smiled to herself, meeting Tom’s eye briefly as he smiled, too.

“Harry?” she asked.

“I _also_ believe it would have a positive effect on morale.”

Kathryn and Tom chuckled at his joke. And in this light-hearted manner, their band of travelers continued on their way.

…………………….. …………………… ………………….. ………………………..

They had been on the highway for about an hour when something happened. Kathryn had always known _something_ would happen; you couldn’t have a road trip without a few snags. But she didn’t know, yet, how big of a _something_ this would turn out to be.

“That’s funny,” Tom quipped, breaking a silence of nearly twenty minutes. He slowed slightly, letting a small sedan cut in front of them. 

“What?” asked Kathryn, sitting at attention.

“Do you hear that sound?”

She listened closely. Yes, there was a faint rattling. Then again, they were on the highway. It was probably just a quirk in the road, combined with the speed they were traveling at. Or maybe it was one of those trucks guzzling fuel in front of them; they always made weird noises.

But the sound grew in strength. And her anxiety grew in magnitude.

“Er, Dr. Janeway?” Harry asked. “Is that our car? Or someone else’s?”

Kathryn didn’t respond at first, unsure of the answer. But as the sound grew and other cars began giving them room, she had to concede that it was possible…

“Uh oh,” Tom said, in a much calmer voice than the situation called for. His eyes flicked to the dashboard before raising to watch the road again. “The check engine light’s just turned on.”

“Should we pull over?” asked Kathryn.

“That would be a logical course of action,” said Tuvok.

Tom grit his teeth, checking his mirrors. And then, without another option, he pulled over with his hazards on.

With the car stopped on the shoulder, everyone froze. Tom banged the steering wheel in frustration, as Harry and Kathryn exchanged worried glances. Something had to be done.

And so, Kathryn made something happen.

“Alright,” she sighed, “Tom, call triple A. We’re gonna have to get a tow truck.”

As he followed her orders, Kathryn set her face in her hands. This was all falling apart so quickly. Less than 100 miles and it looked like they were finished. Their project couldn’t take another cost; they couldn’t afford another car. Tuvok’s was too small, Tom’s was too old. Harry didn’t even have a car, bless him. So this was their chance. And if they couldn’t get it fixed for less than Kathryn had in her wallet, then it was over.

“Houston, we’ve got a problem,” said Tom. He shook his head and showed his phone to Kathryn:

Dead. No cellular data. No signal. No GPS. 

Kathryn checked her own phone, and asked Harry and Tuvok to do the same. But it was no use. Everyone’s phone was out of range. And this wasn’t the nineties anymore; they didn’t have pay phones at every mile marker. This was the stupid 21st century, where stupid smart phones were supposed to work everywhere.

“Where are we?” asked Kathryn.

“Last I checked,” Tom said, “I think we were still in Indiana. We weren’t in Illinois yet.”

Kathryn rested her head back on her seat, letting her eyes fall shut. They hadn’t even made it out of their home state. Hadn’t made it past a single border; a single survey.

“Okay,” she said. “Okay, what are our options?”

She was determined. She was not going to let this project die in the first hour, just because of some car trouble. No. This was months of effort; months of begging people for funding and allowances and time off. Harry’s entire internship was built on this project. And she’d convinced Tuvok to leave his family, spend his son’s birthday with her on this ridiculous road trip. Even Tom needed this trip. His father was so hard on him, and he’d finally gotten a driving job that paid a decent salary (she’d argued with the boss for hours to make sure of that). 

She met each of their eyes, briefly, which was a feat since they were each staring out a different window. Tom finally turned to her again with a slight smile on his lips.

“We can flag someone down and hitchhike across America,” he joked.

She gave him a smile for his effort, but looked to Harry and Tuvok for a, er, more thought-out plan.

“Maybe,” Harry gasped, “we can use the GPS system to hone in on our coordinates. There might be a town nearby we can walk to.”

“Good idea, Harry,” said Kathryn. “Get to working on that. Tuvok?”

Tuvok raised his head from his folded hands, his demeanor calm and steady as ever. 

“If we are to walk along the highway, we should gather all of the necessary supplies. I brought reflective vests and emergency rations just in case of such a situation.”

Kathryn thanked the gods for Tuvok. And then she thanked Tuvok.

“Okay,” she breathed, nodding her head. “We can make this work.”

“Er, Janeway?” Tom asked, staring at his rearview mirror with furrowed brows. “I think someone’s stopping to help us.”

Kathryn pulled down her own mirror, tilting her head this way and that so she could see. When she did, her baffled expression mirrored Tom’s.

“That,” she said, “or they’re going to rob us.”

The bus that had pulled onto the shoulder behind them was...not exactly what Janeway would have asked for if she were given a choice. It creaked, its brakes making a frighteningly high-pitched sound as it stopped. And as it chugged along at its slow pace, it seemed to sway back and forth. She could only wonder what a roller coaster it was to be seated inside such a contraption. Not even the paint, it seemed, had survived whatever hell this poor machine had been through. Rust lined every wall of the beast.

Kathryn gasped as the door opened. Someone approaching; a man. He looked sturdier than the bus itself, as he walked purposefully toward their SUV. 

Tom rolled down the window, just an inch or two, as the man approached. 

And as he came into view, Kathryn gasped despite herself.

He was so unlike the bus, it was almost comedic. While the bus was falling apart, this man was strong. While the bus was hideous, dirtied with rust and chipped paint, this man was, Kathryn admitted, incredibly handsome. And while the bus appeared ominous, perhaps even frightening...this man was decidedly not.

His smile was kind. And his posture, as he leaned on the side of their car to better look at its occupants, was friendly and casual.

“Do you need some help?” he asked.

Kathryn met Tom’s eyes, and somehow she knew they weren’t going to follow Harry’s plan after all.


	2. Conversations by the Roadside

Chapter Two  
"Conversations by the Roadside"

Kathryn wasn’t sure whether to watch the cars whizzing past so quickly it shook the ground beneath her feet, or keep an eye on her little team. Now that they were out here, she felt completely responsible for them. She even felt responsible for Tuvok, who was, in fact, older than she was. It was like Harry had said: she was their captain. And a captain needed to keep her crew safe from harm.

Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Kathryn pushed off the tall highway barrier and took a step back toward her SUV. It looked so exposed out here, with the hood open and all of its inner parts open to the air. Harry was still working with the stranger from the bus, both of them leaned over the various pipes and gaskets to sort out what the problem was. 

Kathryn approached them, keeping an eye on the stranger. He still hadn’t given his name. And though she liked to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, she was especially protective of young Harry. 

“Dr. Janeway,” Harry said as she approached. He gestured to the stranger. “This is Mr. Chakotay.”

“Just Chakotay,” said the man. He wiped his hands in a dirtied rag pulled from his pocket, then reached out to take Kathryn’s hand. 

His grip was strong, but the most prominent thing on Kathryn’s mind was that she was going to smell like engine oil for the rest of the week.

“Well, ‘just Chakotay’,” she said playfully, leaning over the car to peek at its inner workings, “what’s your prognosis?”

“I wish I had good news,” he gritted his teeth, “but your engine is completely blown.”

Kathryn’s head whipped up. 

“No, that can’t be right. I just had it inspected last week.”

Chakotay shrugged his shoulders, releasing a deep sigh. 

“These things happen sometimes. Is the car still covered by a warranty?”

Kathryn bit her bottom lip. She knew the answer all right, and the answer was a firm ‘no’. The SUV was half as old as Harry. Young enough for a road trip; too old to be covered by the dealer. If Kathryn even remembered where she’d bought it in the first place.

“Fantastic,” she murmured under her breath. 

She stepped away for a moment, because she had to. Tears were blinking into her eyes and she had to will them away before any of her team saw. It was ridiculous to feel such grief over something like this. No one had died. No one was even hurt. But still...this project meant a lot to her. And every new development made it clear that this wasn’t going to happen. 

They couldn’t afford a new car. They couldn’t get in touch with Triple A. And if she even mentioned this to any of her superiors, they’d pull the plug immediately. Harry would lose his internship. Tom would lose a job he needed. And all of her and Tuvok’s prep work would be lost; wasted time and effort that they couldn’t get back.

“Dr. Janeway,” Tuvok said suddenly. His voice was steady even as he appeared out of nowhere to stand at her side. “What would you like us to do?”

Kathryn turned to him. He trusted her, as she had told him he could. And behind him was Tom, still trying to get a signal on his phone. She needed to tell them something. She needed to do something before they lost confidence in her.

Squaring her shoulders, Kathryn stood to her fullest height. It was still laughably short next to Tuvok, but it made her feel a little more in control.

“Chakotay,” she waved the man over. He said something to Harry and then joined her and Tuvok. “You’re sure that our engine is completely dead?”

“As a doornail,” he quipped. His lips settled into a frown as he lowered his voice, “Listen, I still want to help you if I can.”

“Is your bus equipped with a direct phone line?” asked Tuvok, “or perhaps a Wifi signal?”

Chakotay chuckled to himself, tugging at his ear.

“We’ve been trying to set one up, but, er, let’s just say it’s in its early stages.”

Kathryn’s ears perked up at that.

“How many people are on your bus?”

Chakotay tilted his head as he counted.

“There’s, ooh, six of us now. We actually just picked up two new passengers last week.”

“It’s a passenger bus?” Kathryn asked.

Chakotay tilted his head again.

“Not exactly, but that’s a long story...Anyway, where were you folks headed? I’m sure we can give you a lift; there’s plenty of room.”

Kathryn and Tuvok shared a small smile. 

“San Francisco.”

Chakotay laughed aloud, casting a pointed glance back to her SUV. 

“Well,” he said, “that’s…that would be hilarious, if it weren’t so frustrating.”

“Tell me about it,” Kathryn deadpanned. 

Harry returned from the car covered in a layer of grease and oil. He sighed, frowning with an expression that was much less hopeful than the day had started.

“I used to help out in my dad’s mechanic shop,” he explained, “and I have never seen an engine look as bad as that one. Sorry Dr. Janeway.”

Chakotay’s head spun back to her.

“Doctor?”

She waved off his enthusiasm.

“I’m a biologist. Me, Tuvok, and Harry were planning to do an ecological survey of the fly-over states.” She sighed, setting her hands on her hips. “It looks like that’s not gonna happen.”

Chakotay’s eyes fell to the ground as he chewed his bottom lip. He was quiet for a long moment; they all were. It seemed that all of the joy had been taken from the day, destroyed by that damned faulty engine.

Kathryn turned slowly toward the wall of trees next to the highway’s shoulder. She could name every one of them: _Eastern Red Cedar_ , _White Pine_ , _Green ash_...

“Chakotay!” a voice suddenly shouted.

It was a woman exiting the bus. She had long red hair, almost as fiery as her eyes. She stomped toward Chakotay with a sideways glance to Kathryn and her companions.

“We have to get moving soon; the crew is frying in there.” She fanned herself with her hand as if to show her point.

“I know,” he said, a little too quickly. “Just a second.”

“It’s been a lot of seconds, Chakotay. We have to get moving. They’re expecting us in St. Louis tonight.”

“I know,” he repeated, raising his hands in surrender. “I want to help these people first.”

The woman rolled her eyes.

“Chakotay, we can’t keep wasting time. What we do is important.”

Chakotay shifted his weight. For a moment Kathryn thought he might give in to her demands, but then he stood up taller. Rolled his shoulders back.

“Seska, ‘what we do’ is try to help people. This is a chance to actually make a difference; right here and now. Maybe helping these people is worth more than whatever’s happening in St. Louis tonight.”

The woman, Seska, took a few steps back. It was as if his words had physically moved her. But she did not speak again. She just stared at the cars whizzing past, crossing her arms slowly against her chest.

Chakotay rolled his eyes and turned back to Kathryn. 

“Sorry about that,” he murmured. “So you were headed for California?”

Kathryn blinked in surprise. What a question, after his heated little argument with Seska. Kathryn barely registered it, caught up as she was in their drama.

“Er, yes. Eventually. We planned on stopping every hundred miles or so to do our survey.”

“That sounds fascinating.” He shifted from foot to foot again, glancing at Seska and then back to Kathryn. “We’re actually heading that way, too. We were hoping to arrive in San Francisco in about three weeks.”

“Were you really?” Kathryn asked, raising her brows. 

That sounded...awful convenient. Her thoughts instantly went protective again; guarded. She found Harry, Tom, and Tuvok just in case this actually did go south. In case this ‘Chakotay’ couldn’t really be trusted. Him, or Seska, or their strange bus situation.

“Yes, we were,” he assured her. And something in his eyes told her that he was telling the truth. “We’re, er...well it’s hard to explain. We’re sort of a non-profit. And we can give you a lift to California if you need it.”

At that, both Kathryn and Seska’s eyes went wide. The former took a step back, just as the latter approached Chakotay with an almost violent surge of energy.

“Chakotay!” Seska gasped. “What the hell are you doing?”

“I’m trying to help these people complete their survey.”

“Is a _survey_ really as important as our work?” she questioned, leaning closer to him than he seemed comfortable with. “Really, Chakotay? What are the rest of us supposed to do while you help these people?”

“I expect you to follow my orders,” he said sternly. “I am the leader of this group, aren’t I?”

Seska shook her head at him.

“This isn’t a military troupe, Chakotay. We’re supposed to be the opposite of the military, actually.”

“Seska, really?” Chakotay asked, setting his hands on his hips. “You’ve been treating us like soldiers since day one. You didn’t even let Neelix buy a few snacks for us when we stopped in Chicago last week.”

“Buying pizza is not a good way to use our funds,” Seska said with yet another roll of the eyes.

“Look,” Chakotay said, raising a staying hand. “I want to help these people. They’re scientists; they’re trying to do some good in the world. Gain knowledge, and give it to other people. And right now, we have the ability to help them do that. We can get back to our usual stuff after we get to California.”

Seska stared at him for a long moment. Then, shaking her head, she spun on her heel and started off down the shoulder of the road. 

“Seska!” Chakotay shouted after her. “Where are you going?”

“St. Louis!” She spat back. Sticking her thumb out, she set her eyes unblinkingly on the approaching cars. 

Kathryn took a deep, deep breath. Today had...well, it hadn’t gone at all the way she’d planned it. Quite the opposite, actually. And now there was a woman hitchhiking down a highway in the middle of nowhere, Indiana. There was a bus of...what were they, vigilantes? God only knew. And beside her, Tuvok appeared almost shocked; the first time he’d ever been surprised in his entire life. 

But Kathryn was a determined woman. And right now, she was determined to find out what exactly Chakotay’s group was about. What kind of people lived on a bus and toured the country in that way; besides a band of some sort? What kind of non-profit rode around in a rusty old bus with no name, phone number, or even design on the side?

As a scientist, Kathryn was born to solve mysteries; find answers; stay curious. And how could she not be curious about this?

So when Chakotay said, “Well, I think I’ve just lost my bus driver.” and Tom said, “I’ve got a truck license.”, Kathryn found herself wondering...maybe this project _could_ still happen.

Maybe they _could_ still get to California.

And maybe Chakotay’s bus was the key.


	3. Deal with an Angel

Chapter Three  
"Deal with an Angel"

Seska got a ride in the first car that stopped for her, and the rest of them watched her go with various expressions of shock, disbelief, and worry.

But almost immediately afterward, there was another person to steal their attention. The bus doors were opening again. And before Kathryn could take a breath or ask God what the hell this day was supposed to be, another woman was approaching Chakotay. She was about Kathryn’s height, and wore an expression of confusion that almost stole the focus from the beads of sweat running down her forehead.

“Er, Chakotay?” the woman asked, feet stuttering to a stop as she eyed Kathryn and her friends. “Where did Seska go?”

“She left.”

“Left?”

“Mmhmm.” Chakotay sighed, covering his face with his hand. When he dropped it, he wore a slight smirk. “Good riddance, eh, B’Elanna?”

“I…” the woman paused before she spoke, choosing her words carefully. “I wouldn’t say that, exactly.”

“Oh, come on,” Chakotay broadened his smile, “We both knew this day was coming for a while. We’ve all had our spats with Seska lately.”

B’Elanna crossed her arms, allowing a smile to touch her lips.

“That’s true.” Her smile dropped almost as suddenly as it had arrived. “But how are we gonna get on the road again? She was our driver!”

Chakotay set his hands on her shoulders. Kathryn had to admit she felt just a touch of jealousy. Ridiculous, since he was a stranger to her and she hadn’t even decided he wasn’t a highway murderer yet. But it was definitely jealousy.

She swallowed it down and watched Chakotay speak to his team member.

“We’ll figure it out,” he promised. “And we’re gonna help these people, too. We might even be taking them on as passengers.” His eyes met Kathryn’s. “My offer still stands. We’d be happy to help you finish your survey. All the way to California, if you’ll have us.”

He smiled that twinkling smile. And, ridiculously, her heart skipped a beat. 

If he were a highway robber, or a murderer of some kind, he was certainly an attractive one. And honestly his voice seemed...sweet. Honest. Kind. So did his eyes. Though he was half a foot taller and could probably lift her with one arm, Kathryn couldn’t find it in herself to be afraid of him, or even slightly nervous. Even his facial tattoo looked harmless; surely a symbol from a religion or cultural background rather than something cooked up in a prison somewhere.

But still, Kathryn kept herself guarded. And as always, she maintained her skeptical scientific mind. 

But before she could say anything, Tom stepped forward and raised a hand.

“I can drive, if you’d like,” he said. “The research lab only paid me to drive; they didn’t say it had to be the SUV.”

Kathryn stepped between the men, setting a hand on Tom’s shoulder as she kept an eye on Chakotay.

“Before we make our decision,” she said, “I’d like to know more about your group.”

“And your bus,” Harry quipped. “It looks like it’s falling apart.”

Tom chuckled at Harry’s words. “We can’t really talk,” he commented, “since ours already fell apart.”

Chakotay gave them each a warm smile, then opened his arms to guide them toward the bus. 

“You’re welcome to meet the team. And don’t worry; they’re all harmless. Half of them did some time in the peace corps.”

Kathryn looked at each member of her own team. Harry seemed eager; probably just ready to get back on the road and off of this godforsaken asphalt. Tom looked steady as ever. Tuvok, strange enough, was the one who stayed hovering by the SUV.

“I will stay with our own vehicle,” he said. 

Something in his voice and the look in his eye told Kathryn that he was looking out for her; staying prepared in case this all went south and he needed to come to their rescue. Good old Tuvok. Always ready for anything.

Kathryn gave him a nod, and then followed Chakotay toward the bus. B’Elanna walked beside them, falling in step with Harry and Tom as they went.

The bus was hotter than the temperature outside, a fact that, unfortunately, carried to the metal accessories. Kathryn burned herself on the stair railing, and then almost as badly on one of the cheap fabric-backed seats. Looking around, she found...well, a bus. Not the best, and certainly not the worst she’d seen. She’d put it somewhere between a school bus and a greyhound.

There were about six rows of seats that led to the back, where sat a large storage unit and a room with a door, probably a bathroom. There was room enough for 12 people to have their own seat or 24 to double-up. About half of these seats were occupied with people and the rest held supplies: food, water, medical kits, gas masks, gloves, helmets. 

The items certainly engaged Kathryn’s imagination. But not nearly as much as the people onboard.

“This is the Maquis,” Chakotay said with a flourish. He gave Kathryn a smile. 

And suddenly she knew who this was. Suddenly she remembered.

“I saw a news segment about your group,” she gasped. “You’re kind of like doctors without borders, or something like that. But unofficial.”

“Something like that,” Chakotay said with a small smile, “We tour the country and give support to people during peaceful demonstrations, emergencies, natural disasters, that sort of thing. Everyone here is trained for something different. B’Elanna is in charge of tech and equipment. Mr. Neelix supplies food and water; he knows where to get stuff cheap.” He looked around the room and pointed at a pair of people in the third row. “And then there’s the Doctor and Kes.They do first aid and emergency medical care, at no charge.” 

“And what do you do?” Kathryn asked, trying to hide her enthusiasm.

“I organize the group; keep an eye on what’s happening and keep them out of harm’s way. We’ve managed to stay out of trouble, mainly.”

“Mainly?” 

“Well,” he shrugged with a bashful smile, “We’ve all gotten some bumps and bruises. And the government doesn’t always agree with how much help we give protestors.”

Kathryn raised her eyebrows. She searched the bus again; searched the faces of these ‘Maquis’. Their group sounded...well, honestly they sounded really cool. But they also sounded like they held their share of risks. Did she really want her small group of scientists to join with a group that rode right on the edge of the most dangerous situations in the country? What if they were pulled into an emergency that the Maquis couldn’t back out of, or got involved in a protest that turned violent?

Feeling the heat of the bus, she descended the stairs and gathered her group together by the SUV. Hands on Tom and Harry’s shoulders, she leaned in close toward their’s and Tuvok’s faces, well away from Maquis ears. She explained the entire situation to Tuvok. And then, with bated breath, she met each of their eyes.

“So...what do you think?”

Tom shrugged. “I’m all for it. They’ve got a bus, they’re going to California...I don’t know about you, but I can think of much more dangerous people we could end up with out here.”

“Be sure, Tom,” Tuvok said with a furrowed brow, “that you are not basing your decision on your prospective employment. There is more at stake than a single job as a chauffeur.”

“I know that,” Tom spat back. “I’m just saying-”

“Thank you, Tom,” Kathryn said, raising a hand. She turned to Harry. “How do you feel about this?”

Harry scratched the back of his neck.

“Honestly? I think it’s a great idea.” He smiled bashfully, as if thinking Kathryn was about to admonish him. “They seem like good people. And we don’t have a ton of other options right now. I say we go for it.”

Kathryn returned his smile. She had to say she agreed with him. But before saying anything definitive, she turned to Tuvok.

“What do you think?”

Tuvok raised an eyebrow. He thought for a long time, mulling it over carefully. And then, with a small smile that only Kathryn saw, he nodded.

“I wish to complete our survey, and this does appear to be the only logical way we can fulfill that goal. Additionally,” he added with a tilt of the head, “I would like to be an ally to the Maquis, if their work is as honest as they say it is. However, I do believe it is important to establish ground rules about our time onboard their vehicle.”

He said the word ‘vehicle’ with a pointed look to the rusty old bus. Kathryn set a hand on his shoulder and nodded in agreement. 

“You’re completely right.” She waved Chakotay over and stood up to her fullest height once more. “We would like to take you up on your offer. But we do have a few things to discuss.”

“Go for it,” Chakotay said with a shrug.

Tuvok stepped forward with his hands behind his back. 

“We must stop every 100 miles to complete our ecological survey.”

“Agreed,” said Chakotay. 

Tuvok tilted his head.

“We would also,” he continued, “like to ask that we not be involved in your work unless we choose to, on a case-by-case basis. I have a wife and children at home, and I would not like to be injured or imprisoned while trying to complete my survey.”

“Understood. We’ll keep away from anything too dangerous. You have my word on that.”

Tuvok nodded, allowing Kathryn to step up to the plate.

“As Tuvok explained,” she said, “We’ll be happy to help you, since you’re helping us. Tom is glad to act as your driver. And I’ll be in charge of my group if you’ll be in charge of yours. For expenses and such, I mean.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Chakotay said, setting his hands on his hips. “We really are just happy to help.”

Kathryn nodded. And with a shake of Chakotay’s hand, the deal was sealed.

“Alright then,” she said with a smile. “I guess there’s nothing else to say but: thank you, Chakotay. You have no idea what this means.”

“It’s what we do,” Chakotay waved off. “Don’t worry about it at all. Just...let me read that ecological survey when you’re done, eh?”

“The first copy is yours,” Kathryn agreed.

And with that, they began transferring their belongings from the SUV to the Maquis bus.


	4. Meet the Maquis

Chapter Four   
“Meet the Maquis”

“Okaaay,” Chakotay grunted, lugging one of Kathryn’s bags as well as Harry’s rolling suitcase, “I think we can make some room back here for all of this.”

As Kathryn passed by one of the Maquis, the man Chakotay had called ‘The Doctor’, he spun around in his seat with a sarcastic smile.

“I believe we ran out of room for equipment about five weeks ago.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” said Chakotay, struggling through the narrow aisle, “Ever so helpful.”

“He’s got a point,” B’Elanna noted. She, too, was seated backward to watch the awkward, fumbling group that was Chakotay, Kathryn, and Harry making their way to the back of the bus.

Chakotay rolled his eyes, offering Kathryn a weary smile.

“I hope you’re all okay with a bit of bantering,” he said. “It’s this group’s specialty.”

“Doesn’t bother me,” Kathryn grinned.

She’d only been on this bus for a few minutes, and yet already she felt a strange sort of endearment toward these ‘Maquis’. They seemed good and kind people; not just because of what their mission was, but because of how they acted toward one another. She could tell that they were close friends. Even Neelix and Kes, whom Chakotay pointed out as their newest passengers, seemed to be one with the rest of the crew.

“There we are,” Chakotay breathed. He finally dropped Kathryn’s bag onto one of the seats in the back, shoving Harry’s suitcase out of the aisle as best as he could. “See? I knew it would fit.”

“I hate to say it,” Harry commented, “but I’m afraid we’ve got some GPS equipment on the top of the SUV that we really kind of need.”

Chakotay’s smile fell. Kathryn couldn’t help but be amused at his red, exhausted face; his jaw dropped slightly as Harry’s words sank in. She brushed his arm and turned back to Harry.

“Don’t worry, Chakotay. I think we can handle it from here.”

“It’s not just a matter of carrying it,” he said, sitting in the last row of empty seats. “I don’t know if we’ve got enough room in storage for all of this.”

“We’ll make it work,” Harry replied with an optimistic nod of the head. “Right, Captain?”

Chakotay met Kathryn’s smile with an impressed grin.

“A doctor and a captain?”

“Just a little nickname Mr. Kim gave me this morning,” she explained. “Though, I think it’s got a nice ring to it.”

“Well then you should keep it,” Chakotay said. “It suits you.”

Kathryn felt her ridiculous pulse quicken again. It kept doing that today; must have been the stress. Well...stress, or the twinkling smile of her new companion.

“I believe,” Tuvok said from the front of the bus, where he was rising up the steps with a bag slung across his shoulder, “we are nearly ready to depart.”

Kathryn shook her head to clear it and got back to work adjusting the equipment on the back seats. Right; they had to finish packing. Get this show on the road. 

Start this incredible journey.

………………………. …………………… …………….. …………………...

“I think I remember how to drive this kind of thing,” Tom remarked, touching the controls as if he were trying to pilot some kind of spaceship. 

Kathryn could only hope that his furrowed eyebrows were a joke of some sort; that his confusion was an act. And when Chakotay turned to her with worry in his eyes, she offered him a reassuring smile that she hoped wasn’t disingenuous.

“Tell us when you’re ready, Mr. Paris,” Kathryn said. She turned and started away from him before Chakotay could question her judgment, or her choice of driver.

The Maquis bus was a homely place, much comfier on the inside than it appeared on the outside. Every window had a cover that could be pulled down to offer shade. And they even had a working radio that carried reasonably well throughout the entire vehicle. The seats were roomy enough for adult legs. And since their group was small, each person had their own two-seater; nobody could complain about a lack of space (except, of course, the luggage and equipment stuffed into the back four rows and crammed into a little closet by the bathroom). 

Kathryn touched the backs of the seats as she went, slowly, through the aisle. She also looked everyone in the eye, acquainting herself with her new crew.

B’Elanna sat in the first seat on the left, just behind the staircase. She was sitting against the window, headphones in, scribbling in a notepad with a fury. Across the aisle from her, right behind the driver’s seat, was Chakotay. He had given up trying to worry about Tom’s driving skills and resigned himself to sitting with his hands folded on his lap, staring out the window with the hopeful and pleading eyes of someone praying.

The next row held Kes and Neelix, one on either side of the aisle. Kes was a young woman, perhaps even younger than Harry, and had a determined look in her eye. She greeted Kathryn warmly and offered a bottle of water, which was taken gratefully. Squeezing past Harry, who was trading a baseball card for one of Neelix’ large bags of pretzels, Kathryn met the Doctor’s eye. He nodded to her with a smile before settling a pair of headphones into his ears. Kathryn thought she heard him humming along to Verdi, but she couldn’t be sure.

Finally, she’d reached the fourth row; hers and Tuvok’s. He had chosen the driver’s side window, giving her the spot behind the Doctor. And as she heard the soft operatic voice singing in front of her, she thought he had probably made a wise choice for himself.

“Tuvok,” she said, shifting over to sit as close to the aisle, and Tuvok, as she could. “You must think I’ve lost my mind.”

Tuvok tilted his head. 

“No, I do not believe anyone thinks that,” he stated. “You chose the best option that was available, we took all necessary safety precautions, and we are now able to continue our research undisturbed. Additionally,” he met her eyes with a playfulness that he didn’t usually allow himself, “You have given us a rare opportunity in which to explore. It is likely that we will never again have the chance to work with a group such as this, so it was wise to do so now.”

“If it was wise to do it at all,” Kathryn noted.

Tuvok shook his head slightly, furrowed his brow. 

“Gaining knowledge,” he said, “is always wise.”

Kathryn reached across the aisle to squeeze his shoulder. Good old, Tuvok. Even when she wasn’t sure of herself, he was there to help her sort it all out. 

Tom turned the engine, and the bus roared to life. A few of the Maquis cast their thanks to various gods, the sweat on their foreheads reaching almost unbearable levels. For her part, Kathryn didn’t know what to feel. Relief? Anxiety? Excitement? It was all there, jumbling up in her chest and stomach, making her ache. Maybe it was best she was seated so closely to the Doctor. She might need him after today.

As Tom pulled the bus out onto the highway, Kathryn craned her neck around the tall back of her seat and searched through the back window of the bus. There was her SUV, broken and forgotten on the side of the road. 

The sight of its ever-shrinking image sent thrill and terror through her system. 

“Alright Captain Janeway,” she murmured to herself, “We’re on our way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and now that the exposition is over....we can finally get this show on the road!! i hope you're enjoying the story so far!


	5. On the Road at Last

Chapter Five  
"On the Road at Last"

Before very long, Kathryn found her head leaned against the window pane, eyelids drooping closed. The world was a whir of sensations. Vibrations echoed through her forehead, jolting her awake whenever the bus ran over a rough patch of road. Her hands, folded on her lap, felt like they belonged to someone else. Voices laughed and joked and whispered throughout the bus. And somewhere in front of her, sometimes sounding far away and sometimes sounding very close, the Doctor was still humming opera. 

When they finally reached Mile 100, Kathryn barely registered it. She heard the squeaking brakes bring them to a stop. Then came shifting bodies, standing or stretching or walking up and down the aisle. She still wasn’t sure what all the fuss was about. Then someone touched her arm. 

Harry, offering a sweet smile.

“We made it to our first stop, Captain.”

She smiled at the nickname, then pushed herself up from the window. God only knew what the state of her hair was; the window had certainly added a touch of ‘frizzy electricity’ to her look. But that was okay. Because as she woke up and gained awareness, she realized where they were. What they were about to do.

Science. Her team. Her survey. 

Finally.

“Let’s get the GPS monitor up,” she said, inflecting an air of command into her voice. 

Harry nodded right away. Kathryn was worried for a moment he was about to say ‘Yes ma’am’. But then he walked off and got to work fishing the equipment from the back.

Kathryn yawned, stretched her arms, and then stood.

Yeah, this was going to be a good trip. 

This was going to be fun.

………….. …………….. …………………… ……………….. ………………….

Out in the Illinois sunshine, Kathryn closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tom had pulled onto a quiet street off the highway, with enough of a shoulder that they could keep out of everyone’s way. Trees lined the street, green and full and reaching up into the May sky. 

This was her Eden.

“I already see about a million species to catalogue,” she remarked, turning to her team with a bright smile. “American Elms...Oooh, Harry, look at that Catalpa.”

“Those are one of my favorites!” said Harry, his own beaming smile a reflection of his captain’s. “Hey, er, Dr. Janeway? I just wanted to thank you again, for letting me come on this trip.”

Kathryn rested a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m just glad we’ve finally made it to our survey.” Her smile softened. “I’m sorry we’ve had so many problems, Harry. But, I guess that’s life in the field.”

Harry waved her off.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m having a great time. It beats being stuck in a lab all day.”

“That it does,” Kathryn agreed.

Then it was time to get to work. 

They took a few samples, labelling them with painful precision. They took pictures. They scribbled ten pages of notes. Tuvok perfectly calibrated their GPS system and input the results of their survey. 

In essence, their first survey went without a hitch.

When Kathryn and her group were back on the Maquis bus, muddy, dirty, and smelling of a strange combination of flowers and sweat, they were completely satisfied with their efforts. Neelix greeted them with water bottles. Chakotay greeted them with a smile. And, surprisingly, none of the Maquis complained about how long they were forced to sit on the side of a random Illinois roadway. 

“You know, Tuvok,” Kathryn said, as they settled into their seats and Tom revved the engine. “I really think we’re going to pull this off.”

“I am equally optimistic,” he replied.

And so, Kathryn eased her head against the window pane once more, so wired from the excitement of her work that she couldn’t fall asleep again. As the bus started off onto the road again, she watched the passing trees whirl into a watercolor painting of greens and browns. 

And with this image dazzling her eyes, she smiled.

………… ……………… …………… ……………. ……………….

“Okay,” Kathryn said at Mile 200, “We want to work as efficiently as possible, so let’s try and figure out the best order to work in. Tuvok, any ideas?”

Her coworker shifted where he stood on the Missouri ground. They were...well, somewhere not quite in St. Louis and not quite _not_ in St. Louis. Kathryn leaned against the door of the bus, then felt it shift open behind her.

Neelix, carrying a cooler filled with water bottles.

“It’s pretty warm out here, so I figured I’d bring you some provisions.”

“Neelix, you’re a saint,” said Harry.

Neelix waved him off with a bashful smile. As he returned to the bus, everyone looked back at Tuvok.

“I believe that the best course of action,” he said, “would be for you and Mr. Kim to take your field notes whilst I collect our GPS coordinates. Then, we should all take pictures at the same time, to better collaborate our efforts. When that is finished, we may get on the bus and start moving again. I can input the survey data later, whilst we are in motion.”

Harry set his hands on his hips.

“You don’t get motion sickness at all?”

“No, Mr. Kim, I do not.”

“Must be nice.”

Kathryn took her notebook from her pocket and gave them each a look.

“Shall we get started?”

……………. ……………. ……………. …………. ………………..

It happened when Kathryn was sketching the leaves of a Catalpa tree. It happened when Tuvok was joining her to begin taking pictures. It happened when Harry was searching for a dropped pencil in the weeds and grasses a few feet into the surrounding forest. 

‘It’ being their next disaster.

The sun was beginning to sink a little lower on the horizon, creating shadows that stretched this way and that. Kathryn checked her watch and found that it was nearly four in the afternoon; this might be their last survey of the day, if they wanted to avoid being out after dark. She continued to sketch, tilting her notebook awkwardly to catch the light.

And then, all of a sudden, she heard a commotion. 

The noise came from the direction of the bus. Spinning around, she peered through the trees and tried to make out what was happening. There was movement. Shouting. Stepping a little closer, careful not to trip over bushes and fallen trees, she found a few people by the bus who were definitely not in the Maquis.

Strangers. Standing by _her_ equipment.

With a furious surge forward, she got back out onto the roadside. Here, she could clearly see the group of strangers, their bodies covered in black clothing and each of them wearing the same navy beanie. Tom dashed out of the bus, then surged toward the group.

“HEY!” Tom yelled as he ran.

Kathryn followed his gaze and found one of the beanie-wearers grabbing at the GPS monitor. They managed to dislodge one of its legs from the ground. But before they could get it completely, Tom was on top of them, shoving them away with all of his might.

The beanied person, a man a little larger than Tom, shouted, and Tom shouted back. Kathryn found adrenaline rushing through her body like a fever. Tuvok and Harry stood at her side, staring blankly as they watched the altercation. 

But it was all over as suddenly as it had started. 

The man trying to steal the GPS monitor jumped away from Tom’s furious attacks, latching onto his friends for support. They ran along the bus, hurling shouts that Kathryn couldn’t quite understand with all of the blood rushing through her ears. One of them, unfortunately, snatched the drinks cooler as they ran.

And, whooping with some cruel form of delight, the men raced off with their drink cooler, turning into the woods to make it impossible to find them again.

Kathryn could only stare.

All anyone could do was stare. Breathe. Let the dust settle. 

This had been the most ridiculous day of Kathryn’s life. First her car died, seemingly out of the blue. Then she abandoned it to join the Maquis. Then...whatever the hell this was. At this point, she just wanted to go to sleep. But her bed was so, so far away and the sun hadn’t even set. They still needed to find a place to get dinner; still needed to make their beds (if the Maquis had bedding, that is). 

Tears blinked into her eyes, but she wiped them away before anyone could see. None of the Maquis needed to know how shaken she was. None of her own team needed to know, either. It could be her own little secret. Captain’s prerogative, right?

“Aw man!” cried a voice from beside the bus door. Neelix. “That was my best cooler!”

………………. …………………. …………………. ……………………...

“How are you feeling?” Chakotay asked sweetly.

Too sweetly, if you asked Kathryn. Just like his too-gentle posture as he sat beside her on her bus seat, holding onto the back of the Doctor’s seat to keep from falling on her with every bump of the bus as it carried on its merry way. Tom had mentioned something about stopping for food in St. Louis.

Kathryn briefly remembered Seska, the Maquis woman who had been adamant to reach St. Louis by this evening. Ignoring Chakotay’s worrying and his questions, she focused on this, instead.

“What was your group going to do in St. Louis tonight?” she asked.

He blinked a few times, sitting back in the seat. She almost believed that he was formulating an answer; as if he didn’t want to tell her.

“It was mostly Seska’s idea, really,” he admitted in a quiet voice. “We usually don’t get involved in things personally; we just offer assistance on the ground. But this time she wanted to meet up with a few leaders and hatch a plan. They were going to meet tonight in St. Louis. But something about it just didn’t sit right with me.” He paused, biting his bottom lip. “Sometimes….sometimes it seemed like Seska didn’t really care about the causes we were supporting. It was more like she just wanted to start something, or fight someone. Sometimes I even wondered...nah, it’s kind of silly.”

“What?” Kathryn asked, fully enthralled in his story. Her eyes pleaded with him to continue.

He gave her a quick smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, and then looked back at his hands.

“Sometimes I wondered if she was trying to get us into trouble,” he said. “That...or get other people in trouble.” He chuckled slightly, “some of us had a running joke that she might be a spy. A secret agent put in our group to keep an eye on us and everyone we worked with.”

Chakotay shook his head, casting off these assertions. But Kathryn’s imagination had been sparked. And her nerves were, strangely enough, calming. 

There was a mystery here, now: who was Seska? And was she secretly a spy who had infiltrated the Maquis? 

Kathryn would’ve been worried, if Seska wasn’t God-knows-where and completely oblivious to where their bus was located. As it was, this story intrigued her.

And it made the Maquis even more intriguing of a group. Even more enticing. 

But the investigation and the Maquis stories would have to wait. Tom was pulling into a parking garage, a tricky thing due to the bus’ height, and they were about to go to dinner. 

Chakotay gave her a smile as he excused himself back to his seat. And Kathryn watched him go with a curious eye.

Who was he, really? How had he, and everyone else on this bus, ended up here? How had they decided that this was the life they wanted?

And how long did they plan on continuing such a life?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mile 100: near Greenup, IL  
> Mile 200: near Saint Jacob, IL


	6. Conversations

Chapter Six   
"Conversations"

“For me,” the Doctor said, stabbing at his pasta, “I started out as a medical doctor. I worked in a hospital in Chicago for most of my life before joining the Maquis a couple years ago.”

Kathryn scooped a forkful of ziti into her mouth, thinking over his words. 

They’d found a quaint Italian restaurant to have their first meal together; a place so quaint, in fact, that their group took up half of the seats in the place. She and the Doctor were seated with Chakotay and Harry, whilst Tuvok, Harry, Tom, Neelix, and Kes were at two other tables beside them. 

“What made you want to join the Maquis?” Harry asked.

The Doctor dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. His expression turned serious, and he thought carefully before speaking.

“As a doctor, I saw a lot of people who needed help and weren’t getting it because they didn’t have enough money.” He shrugged. “By the time I learned about the Maquis, I had saved up enough to live, so I decided to use my skills to help their efforts.”

“Well, Doctor,” Kathryn said, “I’m certainly glad you’re with us. I can’t stand the sight of blood.”

“I have to admit,” said the Doctor, “Kes, our newest medic, is better at handling it than I was at her age. Once...well, I suppose this isn’t the time nor place for that story.”

They laughed together, and then Kathryn turned to Chakotay.

“Did you start the Maquis, Chakotay?”

“Actually I didn’t,” he said, finishing off his salad. “I joined when a man called Michael Eddington was running things. He...well, let’s just say he let it all get to his head a little bit. But anyway,” he shook off the thought of this ‘Michael Eddington’ like it was a bad dream, “I initially joined after my own house was hit by an earthquake. Eddington’s group rescued me, even when emergency crews said the whole building was at risk of collapsing.”

Kathryn suddenly felt bad for bringing this up. Clearly everyone in the Maquis must have had deeply personal reasons for joining, and they probably didn’t enjoy speaking about it to a group of virtual strangers.

But Chakotay gave her a smile, and somehow she knew it was alright.

“That’s the Maquis insanity for you,” he said. 

The Doctor and Harry chuckled at his joke. But Kathryn’s eyes remained slightly distant as she watched Chakotay’s smile; his bright eyes.

“Or,” she said quietly, “the Maquis courage.”

Chakotay and the Doctor looked up sharply at her words. They met each other’s eye, and then bowed their heads once more over their food.

The rest of their dinner was spent in quiet solitude. But that was alright. Kathryn already felt that they had said everything they needed to. She felt closer than ever to the Maquis, this group she had only met about twelve hours ago. 

She knew them on such a level that she didn’t know most of her own coworkers. And soon enough, they’d probably know her, too.

What an adventure this little survey trip was becoming. What a wonderful, glorious adventure.

……….. ……………. ………………. …………….. ………………….. 

Kathryn never thought she’d say this, or even think it, but the trailer park Tom found wasn’t half bad.

There was a shower room (lockable and fully enclosed to keep away prying eyes), a few quality vending machines, and even a conveniently located general store. She found pillows for herself and her crew and brought them back to the bus to the sound of Harry and Tom’s cheers of delight. Combined with Chakotay’s generous offering of blankets, they could actually get pretty comfortable here on the Maquis bus.

Well, acceptably comfortable.

“Don’t worry,” Chakotay said with a slightly cringing smile as Kathryn settled onto her pillow. “You get used to it.”

“I’ll take your word on that,” she quipped; then gave him a warm smile as he peered down at her. “Thank you, Chakotay. You and your crew have been very kind to us.”

“Don’t mention it.” 

They shared another smile. Then, shifting awkwardly, Chakotay tugged at his ear.

“I’d better, er, let you get to sleep. It’s been a long day.” He started off, then stopped himself and turned back to her. “Goodnight, Kathryn.”

“Goodnight, Chakotay.”

Slowly, the lights dimmed. The Maquis finished their shifts brushing their teeth and showering in the tiny-house-style bathroom. And finally, as night settled around them and the cold air whistled through the cracks in the door and window frames, Kathryn found herself nearly asleep.

She shut her eyes. And somehow, she managed not to think about where she was - in the middle of nowhere Missouri. Nor what bed she was sleeping on - a bus seat uncomfortable even for a young teenager on a school trip. 

No, somehow she managed to think about her new friends. These people who were brave and kind and selfless. She wondered if she would ever be like that. 

She wondered until she dreamed.

……………… ……………….. ………………. …………….. ………….

Kathryn stepped off the bus at Mile 300 with only a slightly aching back. She’d never slept on a bus, not like that, at least, and now she was realizing why. But it was another thing to put in the long, strange story she would write about this adventure someday. 

Tuvok stepped out carrying the GPS monitor, which was luckily still working after yesterday’s near-robbery. He gave her a nod and a morning greeting before setting it up by the roadside with his usual efficiency. 

Then came Harry, looking as fresh as if he’d slept in a 5-star hotel. His greeting was loud and enthusiastic, and he almost immediately got to work sketching and identifying the various flowers and trees surrounding them just off the street. Kathryn watched him with envy; she could really do for a cup of coffee, but they were way too far out of any town to bother looking for a Starbucks or even a local joint with decent java.

Just as she was about to get to work, another figure descended the steps: Chakotay.

Kathryn gave him a curious eye. He hadn’t taken interest in any of their previous surveys, and this one was certainly nothing out of the ordinary. 

“Morning,” she said. 

“Sleep well?”

She tilted her head with an amused smile.

“Better than I expected.”

“I’m glad.” 

He smiled, settling himself against the side of the bus with his hands folded behind him. Kathryn watched him out of the side of her eye as she started toward an Elm tree Harry was taking notes on, but stopped herself short.

“What are you doing out here?”

Chakotay shrugged.

“Keeping an eye on things.”

Kathryn rolled her eyes with a smile.

“You don’t need to worry about us,” she assured. “Yesterday was a fluke; those guys came out of nowhere. But...I’m a tough girl; I can handle myself.”

“I’m sure you can.”

Contrary to his words, he didn’t budge an inch. Kathryn stared at him. And then, against her wishes, smiled with an agreeable nod.

“You don’t have to watch over us, but...thank you, anyway.”

“You don’t have to keep thanking me, you know,” he said. “Helping people is what I was born to do. I can’t help myself.”

Kathryn held up her notebook.

“Just like science is what I was born to do; I’d better get to work.”

“Well,” he said with a grin, “I suppose we each found our calling.”

At that, Kathryn forced herself away from him. She had to get to work! Harry was probably halfway through his report. And Tuvok; poor, perfect, Tuvok was already finished collecting their coordinates.

But something about Chakotay was magnetic. No, that was ridiculous. She simply had more to talk to him about, that was all. He was a good conversationalist.

“Do you really believe everyone has a calling? Or a fate?”

Chakotay stared at the ground for a moment, an introspective look shining in his eye.

“I believe people create their own fate. But the universe does have a way of making sure certain things happen.”

His eyes turned up and met hers. And just from looking at them, she knew what he was saying: they were meant to meet. Or the Maquis was meant to fall in with her group. Or...or nothing at all. She couldn’t pinpoint his meaning; if there was a meaning.

Head spinning, Kathryn turned away to start her work. But just as she did, she caught something in his expression: a smile. Not one of his usual one’s; this one seemed personally crafted for her eyes only.

Before she could spin back around and ask what the hell he was trying to communicate to her, Chakotay had walked off to help Tuvok bring the GPS monitor back onto the bus.

Kathryn watched him walk away. 

And Kathryn smiled to herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of chapter: St. Louis  
> Mile 300: near Hermann, MO


	7. The Job of the Maquis

Chapter Seven  
"The Job of the Maquis"

The Missouri sun was just starting its descent, marking one or two O’clock in the afternoon by Kathryn’s estimate. She squinted across the bright plain of the ground and set her hands on her hips. They’d been out here for less than half an hour, but already it felt like they’d catalogued almost everything they were going to find.

It was a small town they were in; a few blocks, a few broken stop signs. No school. No hospital. Really, it was just a neighborhood in the middle of nowhere. She assumed there were people who lived here, but they must have done a lot of their living in the surrounding towns. 

Suddenly, finally, there was a sound. The bell of a bike, and the tread of its spinning wheels. A boy came whizzing around the corner full speed, his legs pumping to carry him faster and faster across the pale concrete. Kathryn smiled to herself; maybe this town wasn’t as lifeless as it had first appeared.

She knelt to the ground and got back to her work. There were soil samples to take notes on, pale and dry as they were. She opened her notebook and scribbled some words: beige, brown, tan. Those were the colors that this town was made of. 

Taking a break to stretch her neck, she looked up. Kes and Chakotay were wandering down one of the empty streets, deep in conversation. Probably talking about Kes’ experiences so far, new as she was to the Maquis. Chakotay was probably one of those leaders that always made sure his people were happy; fulfilled. One of those guys who asked ‘how are you’ and really listened for an honest answer.

Kathryn found herself smiling again. 

Before she got back to work, Kathryn watched the boy on the bike turn onto the street Kes and Chakotay were walking down. Only this time, he wasn’t pedaling. His legs were flailing out to the sides, struggling to stay on the pedals. He cried out as the handlebars jerked left and right, careening his bike to dangerous angles. 

With a final struggle, his bike lilted to the side, sending him sliding across the concrete.

Kathryn jumped to her feet, but then froze. Kes and Chakotay were already running toward the boy at full pelt. They knelt beside him, gentle voices murmuring in the desolate Missouri air.

Kathryn walked gently forward, watching them; listening.

“It’s alright,” Kes soothed, rubbing the boy’s upper arm as he calmed his tears. “We’ll get this all cleaned up.”

Luckily, Kes had her medic satchel on her shoulder. She slipped it off and clicked it open before the boy even had time to sniffle, then pulled out a rag and some water.

Chakotay turned to the bike, gliding his fingers across its metallic frame.

“It looks like we’re gonna have to fix these brakes. It’s a wonder you didn’t crash sooner; the cable’s all chewed through.” Chakotay gave the boy a warm smile. “You must be a really good driver, to be able to ride it for as long as you did.”

The boy sniffled, a tiny smile appearing on his face.

Now that he wasn’t crying, Kes got to work fixing the boy’s injuries, while Chakotay stood and started toward Kathryn. She wiped her hands on her pants and halved the distance between herself and him. 

“Can you get B’Elanna?” he called, “And ask her to bring her toolbox?”

“No problem!”

Kathryn followed his instructions without hesitation or delay. Within a minute, she and B’Elanna were emerging from the bus, the latter with a toolbox in her hand. Neelix followed behind them with a box of snacks and a bottle of water. And together, Kathryn and the Maquis members returned to the scene of the boy’s crash.

His knee was covered in a bandaid now, all of his scrapes cleaned up and healed. Kathryn was glad to see his smile as Kes helped him pick out a sticker and Chakotay gave his own comments.

“I would choose the dinosaur,” he said. “But you seem more like a sports enthusiast; is that right?”

The boy nodded, but ultimately decided on the T-Rex. Chakotay patted him on the shoulder with a grin.

“Wise choice.”

Kathryn had to admit that watching Chakotay work with the boy was...she didn’t know the word for it. Cute? Sweet? Admirable? All of the above and more?

Tallying up his qualities, that she knew of, Chakotay was handsome, intelligent, kind, selfless, and good with kids. If she didn’t know any better she’d think he fell out of a Hallmark movie. But he was definitely flesh and blood. He was definitely real. 

Now, she knew he must have some kind of skeleton in his closet; everyone did. But his was probably something ridiculously unimportant. Maybe he snored. Maybe he was bad at tennis. 

Or, who knew, maybe he really did have some fatal flaw. Kathryn couldn’t let herself be swept up in all of this. She hadn’t known him a very long time; considerably less than a long time. She was not one to fall for strange men, especially strange men that appeared to be perfect. 

So as they continued to help the boy, Kathryn turned her attention to the other Maquis. B’Elanna, who was repairing the boy’s bike with such effort that one would think it was her life’s work. Neelix, who was offering the boy snacks and treats that his parents had probably banned him from eating because of the sugar content. Kes, who was showing the boy all of her medical supplies with a childish wonder of her own.

These people were absolutely fantastic. All of them. Hard working, kind, helpful. Kathryn could only wish to be like them someday in the future. 

In time, the boy got back onto his newly repaired bike. And with a smile, he rode off into the setting sun, pedalling like his life depended on it. There was no sign of injury; just a very happy child whose day was back on track thanks to the Maquis.

Kathryn stopped Chakotay as he was walking back to the bus. She didn’t have the words right away, just held his arm and shook her head with a smile.

“Chakotay, what you did for that boy...that was very special.”

He shrugged, waving her off as he continued toward the bus.

“It’s just our job.”

“No,” Kathryn squeezed his arm, finally making him stop where he was. “It’s more than that.”

They locked eyes. Kathryn felt her heartbeat quicken. Chakotay smiled. 

And then, together, they turned back to the bus and started off, walking in step all the way to the door.

…………………… …………………. ………………… ……………………

“Chakotay!” Tom called as he drove, so loud that Kathryn could hear him all the way in the back.

She could sense Chakotay’s tension as he lifted his head to respond. He hadn’t been fond of Tom’s habit of speeding, so the fact that the driver was now talking while he piloted their prized Maquis bus must have had the man on the edge of his seat; literally. 

“Yes, Tom?” Chakotay said through gritted teeth.

“I know of a place in Kansas City where we can unwind a little bit,” said Tom. “Do you mind if we go into the city to get some dinner?”

“Not at all,” Chakotay replied.

Kathryn wondered if he was just trying to get this conversation over with as soon as possible; get Tom’s attention back on the road where it belonged.

Smiling to herself, Kathryn rested her head on the window. The sun was beginning to set, creating a watercolor painting of oranges and blues all across the sky. They’d taken three surveys today: Mile 300, 400, and 500 on their long journey. With a total mileage of 2,267 from Bloomington to San Francisco, give or take a few miles depending on Tom’s divergence from their course, they had nearly completed a quarter of their journey.

That thought almost made her sad. Sure, she had a whole life back home, and a heck of a story to tell everyone at the research lab in San Francisco. But there was something so magical about this journey. A bunch of strangers, from all kinds of different backgrounds, all coming together to complete a scientific survey and make their way across the U.S.A.. A voice in the back of her head told her not to miss a single second; these memories would last a lifetime.

In front of her, the Doctor was humming a new opera. B’Elanna and Chakotay were in quick conversation about supplies. Neelix and Kes were discussing something amongst themselves, giggling every now and then like school kids. Harry was at the front calibrating the gps to give Tom directions into the city. 

And, as always, trust Tuvok was still in the seat across the aisle; reading quietly with a tiny smile curling his lip.

Kathryn watched him for a long moment, then settled her head neatly against the window again. She’d never been to Kansas City before. She wondered what trouble, and fun, Tom would get them into in the next few hours.

And with that thought, she closed her eyes and listened to the whir of the bus, the soft voices of the Maquis, and the sound of her own peaceful thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mile 400: near Pilot Grove, MO  
> Mile 500: near Kansas City, MO


	8. A Night at Chez Sandrine

Chapter Eight  
“A Night At Chez Sandrine”

“Welcome to Chez Sandrine!” Tom called, gesturing the seedy bar tucked in between a shop called ‘Kansas City Vapes’ and another called ‘Babe’s Barbeque’. 

Kathryn gave him a supportive smile. Somewhere deep down, she trusted his judgment. It was just difficult sometimes. But she also gave a worried glance to Kes.

As if reading Kathryn's mind, Chakotay asked, “Do they card at the door?” 

Tom waved a hand.

“She’ll be fine. Trust me, they’re really good at denying minors alcohol. But you can do anything else here.” Eyeing the skeptical faces around him, Tom smiled. “It’s a good place! You’ll love it.”

“We’ll take your word for it,” said Chakotay.

He and Kathryn shared an amused smile.

Once inside, Kathryn could understand Tom’s infatuation with the place. It was quiet, clean, and larger than it seemed from the outside. She felt warmed by the lights and the roaring fire on the far wall. The atmosphere was more like an English pub than a Kansas City bar. 

By the looks on her companions’ faces, she wasn’t the only one who was impressed.

“Nice choice, Tom,” Harry said, patting Tom on the back. He eyed the bar in the corner and tugged Tom’s arm toward it. “You wanna split one of their two for one deals with me?”

“Sure thing, Harry.”

“Hey!” Kathryn called to them with a smile, “You two be careful, alright? I don’t to have to call either of your parents.”

“Aye aye, Captain,” Harry grinned.

She gave them each a playful push toward the bar and watched them until they were seated. 

“Have you ever been to Kansas City? before” Chakotay asked suddenly.

Kathryn spun around to find him closer than she thought he’d be. She jumped back slightly, startled, and then they both laughed together.

“No, actually, I haven’t. You?”

He shrugged.

“Just for a protest or two some time ago. If I’m remembering properly, I got a nice hit on the head that day.”

She winced in sympathy, leading him subconsciously to a seat near the fireplace. They sat down in perfect sync.

“Did you have to go to a hospital, or was the Doctor able to help you?” Kathryn asked, picking up the menu without looking. 

Her eyes were stuck on Chakotay.

“Oh, no, I had a full concussion.” He said these words with an infectious smile and a shake of the head, as if retelling a joke. “A week later I made it worse by banging my head. Ran right into a low door frame while I was carrying a young boy out of a flooded basement.”

Kathryn shook her head, accidentally staring at him as he flipped through the menu. 

“Have you ever considered leaving the Maquis, because of the danger?”

Chakotay chuckled to himself.

“All the time. Well, not _all_ the time, but...often. Especially after days like that. But you know what?” He set down the menu again, looking Kathryn in the eye. “When I finally got that boy out, his mother was waiting for him. He hugged her. And then he ran back and hugged me. I didn’t really appreciate it at the time; I was soaking wet and my head was throbbing. But I never forgot the look on that boy’s face when he realized he was going to be alright.”

Chakotay smiled at the memory, staring somewhere far beyond Kathryn’s head. He looked so wise in that moment; so at peace with himself and with the world. Then, just as suddenly, he shook off the memory and turned back to his menu.

“Tom mentioned that this place has some good mushroom soup. What are you going with?”

Kathryn stared for a second too long, then jerked back and grabbed her own menu.

“Oh, I’ll figure something out,” she said.

But her mind was far away, imagining that boy, that flooded house, and that man running in with a concussion to save the day. 

The man sitting right in front of her.

………………. ………………….. …………………. …………………….

“8-ball, left pocket,” Tom announced.

He bent, licked his lips, and took his shot. And with a clack of polyester, his prediction came true.

Kathryn and the Maquis cheered. Harry shook his head in disbelief. Even Tuvok raised an impressed eyebrow.

“You are highly skilled in the game of billiards, Mr. Paris,” he said. “But I wonder if you would be willing to match your skills against mine.”

Tom scoffed, leaning on his cue stick.

“Is that a challenge, Tuvok?”

Tuvok snatched a cue stick from the wall and rubbed chalk onto its point.

“It is, indeed.” He gave Tom a smirk that only he could see. “Would you like to break, or shall I?”

Tom gestured to the table, backing up a few paces.

“By all means,” he said, “go ahead.”

Kathryn took a sip of her beer with a smile. She was glad to see her team interacting so well. It had been risky, to say the least, putting them all together. Tuvok, a mature scientist; Tom, a less-than-mature driver; Harry, a young and eager college grad. But it seemed to be working better than she could have hoped.

Leaving them to play their game, she strolled toward the fireplace. Kes was sitting at one of the tables there warming her hands with a distant smile on her face. 

“How are you, Kes?” asked Kathryn.

“I’m having a great time, Captain.” Kes’s smile fell suddenly. “If it’s okay to call you that-”

“Please,” Kathryn raised a hand. “I love it.” She glanced around the room with a furrowed brow. “Where’d Neelix get off to?”

“Oh, he’s just grabbing us some snacks from the bar,” said Kes. 

Just then, Neelix reappeared. His arms were absolutely loaded with food of all kinds: tortilla chips, pretzels, barbeque wings, two glasses of cider. Kathryn’s eyes widened at the sight, which made Kes and Neelix laugh.

“Don’t worry, Captain,” said Neelix, “We’ll save some for the rest of you.”

“I would hope so.”

“We have to hide this from the Doctor,” Kes said, even as she took a few of the tortilla chips. “He’ll have a fit if he sees how we’re eating.”

“Speaking of the Doctor,” Kathryn said, “where is he? I haven’t seen him or B’Elanna all night.”

Neelix swallowed the wings he’d already started, then answered, “He’s decided to do an open mic. And B’Elanna iiiiiis; oh! Right over there!”

Kathryn turned to find B’Elanna leaning on the bar chatting to the bartender with emotive gestures and a multitude of accented voices. A few strangers were absolutely enthralled in whatever story she was telling.

“Looks like she’s having a good time,” Kathryn noted. 

Kes and Neelix laughed in response.

As she started back to the pool game, where it seemed Tuvok was giving Tom a run for his money, Kathryn heard a distinctive murmur come over the crowd. The lights dimmed slightly. And on the side of the room opposite the bar, a spotlight shone on a raised platform.

“Give it up for our first open mic performer of night...The Doctor!” The Emcee carried out the vowels so long that by the time his name was said, the Doctor was already onstage.

He seemed nervous, tugging at his collar. But when he made eye contact with his Maquis crewmen, he nodded and stood with more confidence.

“ _That old black magic has me in it’s spell, that old black magic that you weave so well_ ,” he sang, to the amusement and enjoyment of the crowd.

Kathryn continued toward the pool tables as he sang, listening to every word. He was actually pretty good; very good, in fact. But mostly she was just in disbelief. It had been so long since she’d been on a trip like this, meeting new people and getting involved in all sorts of new activities. And now, here she was, in a bar she’d never heard of in a city she’d only ever heard of, with a bunch of people who already felt like her friends. 

This was...this was something special. Something she’d never get used to, and never get over. 

When the Doctor finished his song, Kathryn found herself standing right beside Chakotay, almost brushing shoulders. He clapped loudly in her ear, calling her back to the present. She joined in the applause a moment later, laughing at Tom’s ridiculous whistling and Harry’s cheers. And then she met Chakotay’s eye, shared a smile, and felt her chest almost bursting with joy.

…………….. ………………. ………………… ………………………….

“Red solo cup! I fill you up; let’s have a party! Let’s have a party!”

Kathryn lifted her head from her hand, spinning on her barstool to better watch B’Elanna and the other patrons singing the song in various levels of drunkenness. B’Elanna, it seemed, hadn’t been affected by the alcohol at all. She took yet another swig of whatever drink she had and directed the others in the music as if conducting a symphony, her movements steady and stable as ever. 

Suddenly, the barstool nearest her squeaked loudly. Kathryn furrowed her brows, already feeling an impending headache. She assumed it was Chakotay, or one of the others in their group. But when she turned to glare at whoever it was, she found an old man staring at her from under a ten-gallon hat.

It was such a strange image that Kathryn had to blink in surprise. She could have sworn he hadn’t been there a moment before, but there he was: a perfect cowboy, sitting with half of his face hidden by the shadows of his ridiculous hat.

“There’s a storm coming,” he murmured. His voice was deep. Very, very deep; but steady. 

Kathryn shook her head.

“My weather app said we’ve got clear weather all week.”

The man shook his head.

“I know better than those apps they’ve got.” His eye turned up to meet Kathryn’s, shining bright blue as it caught the light. “You better take care now.”

She found herself nodding. It was as if he knew the future; her future. Like this was some sort of premonition.

Before she could question him further, the man stood, finished half of his drink in one swig, and walked out of the bar, the spurs on his boots clicking with every step.

Kathryn watched him for a long time. And once he had disappeared outside again, she stared at the door. Her spell was only broken by B’Elanna, who, clear-voiced as ever, set a hand on her shoulder with a small smile.

“We’re about to head back to the bus, Captain. Did you want another round before we leave?”

Kathryn raised her head, meeting B’Elanna’s eyes. Shaking her head, she stood beside her.

“No,” she said, “Let’s get going.”

Kathryn stumbled slightly as she took a step forward. But the person who caught her was, surprisingly, not B’Elanna.

It was Chakotay; reappeared from God-knows where.

“Woah!” he gasped. “You need some help, Kathryn?”

“I’m afraid I can’t handle alcohol like I used to,” she joked. 

But even as she wrapped her hand around his arm; even as they all started back toward the bus parked a few doors down; even as her body filled with the quiet pleasure of alcohol and warmth and friends nearby...there was also a growing sense of unease. It was that old man, definitely. He’d filled her with a bad feeling and now she couldn’t shake it. Even Chakotay noticed.

“Everything alright?” he asked, as they waited for the others to get onto the bus first.

Kathryn bit her bottom lip.

“Something tells me we’ve got quite the adventure ahead.”


	9. The Week of Hell, Part One

Chapter Nine  
“The Week of Hell, Part One”

Kathryn woke late the next morning. They all did, in fact. And then, fumbling, they all tripped over each other to get to the bathroom or get back to their seats from the bathroom. It was a hectic, hazy kind of day that began around ten or eleven in the morning and seemed to exist somewhere outside of the spacetime continuum. 

But at some point, Tom gathered enough cognitive ability to drive, and off they went. 

Kathryn woke again at about one in the afternoon. They were in Kansas, there was no denying that. Everywhere was dust. Everywhere was sky. And nowhere was there anything that could be classified as being ‘alive’.

Perhaps she was being unfair because of her throbbing headache, but she really didn’t see the point in surveying such an empty terrain. What would she take notes on? The tumbleweeds blowing across the road? How little saturation the soil had? How few cars she noticed as they tore down the empty, endless highway?

Tucking her aching head against her shoulder as a temporary pillow, she kept her half-open eyes looking through the window. Time passed in a rhythmic daze. The bus bounded down the highway, bouncing with every slight glitch in the pavement. The Maquis murmured to each other. Kathryn’s eyes fell shut, then opened again, then shut for another few minutes.

At one point, her ears picked up a new sound: a crackling voice coming from the bus’s radio. It was a newscaster of some sort; they all put a similar inflection on their words. She picked her head up and stretched as she listened.

“The tornado just missed Wichita this morning...expected to move north east...should fizzle out by…-time it reaches Kansas City.”

With this good news - they were headed west, in the opposite direction of the storm - Kathryn let her eyes slip closed again. Well, what do you know; that old man had been right about the storm. But apparently it wasn’t she who was going to be caught in it. She whispered well wishes to the people who _would_ be affected, and then let herself fall into the nap she so desperately needed.

…………… ………………….. …………………. …………………….

Mile 700 was, shall we say, uneventful. The survey took all of five minutes, mostly so Harry could dig as deep as he dared into the tough soil to try and find any source of life. But when Tuvok had completed locating their coordinates with the GPS monitor and Kathryn had taken notes and pictures of the sole, decaying tree within 500 yards, they gave up the search. 

Not even an insect dared to brave this rugged landscape.

Back on the bus, Tom started off again. And again, Kathryn found herself drifting in and out of consciousness.

Mile 700 came and went as quickly as 600. As uneventful. As boring. As desolate. As depressing.

This was such a strange existence, out here in the middle of nowhere. Kathryn had grown up on farmland, where there were creatures of all sorts on every square inch of soil. And sure, she’d seen a fair bit of sky hanging above the fields; but nothing like this. Out here, it was like there was nothing _but_ sky. Tan, sandy soil and an endless sky above.

Kansas sure was one strange place.

“Tom,” Kathryn said as she maneuvered around him to get her turn to wash in their tiny shower. “I think we should take the rest of the night off; I’m beat, and I’m willing to bet everyone else is, too.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Tom replied.

He looked exhausted, the poor kid. Bags under his eyes, five O’clock shower darkening his jawline. Kathryn patted him on the shoulder and fumbled her way into the bathroom.

It was time to clean this day off of her. Time to get ready for a wonderful, companionable dinner on the bus they’d been trapped on for almost an entire day.

What an adventure this was.

Kathryn forced a smile to her image in the mirror and told herself it was all worth it. 

…………….. ………………….. ………………… ………………………

“Let’s see,” Neelix said, strolling up and down the aisle with a snack box like one of the salesman at a baseball game, “I’ve got fruit parfaits from the mini-fridge; trail mix; beef jerky-”

“Ooh!” Harry raised a hand. “I’ll take the jerky.”

Neelix passed out the food in this way until everyone had a bit of something. It wasn’t exactly dinner food, as the Doctor was quick to point out. But it was plenty of calories to hold them over. 

And besides, it was all very tasty.

“Where did you get fresh apples, Neelix?” Kes asked, taking a large bite from a Granny Smith.

“A market in Kansas City. I went out early this morning while you were all still asleep and found them. There are also some bananas, strawberries, and grapes.”

“Neelix, I keep telling you,” Harry said with a grin, “you’re a saint.”

Neelix waved him off with a bashful smile. But then, all of a sudden, the radio crackled to life. Tom, it seemed, was tuning in to find something. 

He shushed them all with a seriousness he didn’t usually show.

“The....tornado….-suddenly turned...heading northwest...evac-”

The radio cut off suddenly. So suddenly, in fact, that the entire bus full of people jumped and eyed one another as if listening to a ghost story.

Uh oh.

“-Expected…” the radio faded back in, “to fizzle out before reaching Salina and...surrounding area.”

They all collectively breathed out a sigh of relief; their area would be fine. Probably. Hopefully.

Still, though, their dinner conversation came to a halt. No one spoke. No one smiled. No one laughed, or joked, or made any of the usual banter. They all just...sat there, eating and drinking. And when dinner was finished, they quietly took turns brushing their teeth and showering. 

As they slinked back to their seats for bed, no one said a word. They offered hopeful, gentle smiles. 

And Kathryn couldn’t be sure, but she believed no one really got much sleep that night. 

She certainly didn’t. 

…………….. ………………….. …………………. ……………………

“Captain,” a voice whispered.

Nope. Too early. _Way_ too early. And it was probably just a voice in her dreams. Dreams that she could get back to if she just kept her eyes closed and-

“Dr. Janeway!” the voice insisted. Hands shook her shoulder. 

Hands that she could no longer believe were imaginary.

“What?” she grunted, realizing that the voice had been Harry’s. 

He had plenty of others to ask for help. She loved the kid, but really; it couldn’t be daytime yet. Forcing her eyes open, she noticed that it was still dark in the bus. 

Dawn hadn’t even arrived.

“The tornado is on its way.”

At that, Kathryn sat up so suddenly she almost banged into Harry’s head. Everything came flooding back to her - the tornado warning, their quiet dinner, the uneasiness with which they all went to bed. She tore off her blanket and wiped at her face, urging herself to wake up.

Voices spoke in hushed tones around her: the others, fumbling around the dark in their own newly-awakened dazes.

Harry set a hand on her arm as she stood; she wasn’t sure if it was to steady her or himself. The kid was practically trembling.

“Chakotay said we have to pack everything away. Or else; or else it could be a, er, a projectile, if the wind picks up or anything. We’re trying to put away any loose items - pens, notebooks, supplies.”

With that, he hurried off to help with the effort. Kathryn stumbled into the aisle after him, narrowly avoiding collision with B’Elanna, who was lugging the GPS monitor toward the bigger storage unit in the back.

“Excuse me, Captain,” she said, “Gotta get this put away so it doesn’t knock one of our heads off.”

Kathryn wasn’t too fond of her colorful language; it was a little grotesque for this hour in the morning. But her tone did urge Kathryn to move faster. Using her phone light as a guide, she quickly stashed her pens and pencils into a closeable case with her glasses, then tossed the whole lot into one of the storage bins on the back seats.

When she was done cleaning her seat and the surrounded area, Kathryn maneuvered her way to the front. Tom was there, eyes darting across a hardly-working gps and a map lit up by flashlight.

“There’s no way we can outrun this thing,” he said grimly, “Even if we’d kept driving all night, this thing is following our exact path. It’s like it’s trying to hit us.”

Kathryn set a hand on his back. He was breathing harshly, warm with perspiration.

“Where are we?” she asked. The windows didn’t help much; it was so early that everything was a dark shade of blue.

“Parked about ten minutes from the highway. We’re safer here on the lower ground. We can hunker down til this thing passes over.”

Kathryn nodded. 

They were going to be okay. She and Chakotay would make sure of that. And they would get through this. Besides, if ever there was a team that could handle an emergency, surely it was the Maquis?

With one last encouraging squeeze of Tom’s shoulder, Kathryn went back to stashing away supplies and aiding the Maquis in their preparations.

……………… ………………….. ………………….. ………………….

Kathryn sat in her seat more uneasy than ever. The storm was coming; there was no denying it now. The sky seemed alive, like it was moving of its own accord. And everyone on the bus was in position, waiting for impact. Heads bowed down. Eyes turning just to find other eyes to worry with. 

Kathryn was glad Tuvok was in the seat beside her own. His steadiness had been an asset this morning, and it was her salvation now.

“Do not worry, Kathryn,” he said. “We have made every preparation possible, and we are well equipped to handle an emergency situation, if one should arise.”

Kathryn nodded. His words made sense. And they did help, to an extent.

But even still, she was anxious.

And even still, she was afraid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if any of you are from kansas, i very much apologize; i didnt mean for the 'week of hell' to mean 'a week in kansas', but thats just how it worked out!! anyhoo, i hope y'all are enjoying the story and it's slightly more dramatic moments coming up. 
> 
> Mile 600: near McFarland, KS  
> Mile 700: near Glendale, KS


	10. The Week of Hell, Part Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter gets a liiiiitle more dramatic than the ones that have come before, just a warning. we are in the week of hell, after all.

Chapter Ten  
“The Week of Hell, Part Two”

The storm came upon them gradually, then all at once.

The way that they were parked, Kathryn’s window faced the south, where the storm was coming from. She had the perfect view of the gathering clouds, the green-gray of the sky, the wind whipping at what few trees existed in the distance. It was a frightening sight, and it had her ducking a little lower, covering her head with her blanket a little more carefully.

The last time she’d been this afraid of a storm was when she was a little girl in Indiana. Lightning split a tree she’d been climbing in not five hours before, tearing it in two with the precision of her grandfather’s axe. She’d had nightmares about it for days afterward; what would have happened if she’d still been in the tree when the storm hit.

Silently, Kathryn wondered if she would have nightmares about _this_ storm too.

Tumbleweeds and particles of dust hurled into the side of the bus with reckless abandon. The poor old thing would need a new paint job, that was sure. But the windows seemed to be holding strong in the wind. 

Kathryn peeked up from her blanket cover and found Tuvok peeking, too. As soon as she caught his eye, he threw his jacket back over his head and pretended he’d been doing so the whole time. 

It was a small moment, but it was enough to make Kathryn smile.

The wind picked up, tearing across the plains. Kathryn could hear it whistling, ripping, breaking things outside. A stoplight, or something like it, fell down in the distance. The bang echoed all the way to her eardrums. Somewhere else, a tree was cut down. 

She knew that sound. 

That sound haunted her nightmares.

And then, terrifyingly, the tornado reached their humble bus, which suddenly felt very small and very fragile. The floor shook beneath Kathryn’s feet like an earthquake. 

“Keep your heads down!” Chakotay called out. His voice was as authoritative as it was protective. A leader determined to keep his people safe, and let them know that with him around they already _were_ as safe as they could be. 

Kathryn followed his orders without hesitation. The world above her breath-warmed blanket fortress was enticing, there was no doubt. But not so enticing that she would risk her life for it.

Over the next few minutes, the wind continued to rage in a violent crescendo. The bus was shaking, rocking. If she closed her eyes and used her imagination, Kathryn could pretend it was just a group of excitable people shaking their bus. Or perhaps they were on a ship in the ocean, making their way across choppy water.

She was thrown quite literally back into the real world with a slam! of wind and debris. It crashed into the wall beside her, careening the bus almost entirely onto its left wheels.

Everyone went flying.

There were shouts; sounds of crashing. Kathryn may have screamed herself; it was impossible to tell. Her blanket was ripped off of her head, filling her senses with a whirl of colors and movements as she flew towards the other side of the bus. She thought she could see others falling. Her entire side of the bus, it seemed, was crashing toward the other.

Had the bus flipped over? Or just the people inside of it? 

Dispelling this thought as she continued her descent, her hands searched for purchase. She latched onto the first thing that her hand touched; some kind of hardy piece of furniture. 

A fraction of a second later, she regretted her actions. Something in her wrist gave, and this time she knew she cried out in pain. 

But then, all of a sudden, it was over. Someone was holding her in their steady arms, covering her head with something - a jacket? - and pulling her into a seated position on the floor.

“Are you alright?” asked Tuvok, the person she now recognized was holding her.

“I think so,” she said shakily. She cradled her wrist and leaned against him.

In this position, she listened to his heartbeat until the storm eased and the bus stopped rocking.

…………….. …………………… …………………. …………………….

The tornado lasted only a few minutes, but to Kathryn it might as well have been hours. She and Tuvok sat virtually on top of each other on the floor together, sheltered beneath his jacket to protect their heads and arms from debris. 

Her wrist ached, but it wasn’t unbearable. 

She was afraid, but she was brave enough to bear it.

Finally, the winds died down and they were able to hesitantly lift off the heavy jacket that had shielded them from the shattered glass of broken windows. The poor bus had suffered worse than Kathryn, with half of the windows she could see broken or at least cracked. 

God only knew what the total damage was. But Kathryn thanked the stars that they had thought to stash away the loose supplies and things; they really would have become hazards in such a storm as this was.

Forcing stiff limbs to coordinate, she pushed herself up onto the nearest seat. She had to be careful about where to apply pressure; which muscles to use. Everything felt achy and strained after her fall and subsequent awkward squatting position next to Tuvok. But mostly it was just her wrist that hurt.

Damn her and her determination to catch herself. She’d have been less injured if she’d just let herself fall into Tuvok’s waiting arms. 

Determining that she and Tuvok were okay, or as okay as could be expected, Kathryn shifted over to the edge of the seat and checked on the rest of the bus. Broken glass lay scattered around, falling off of everyone’s blankets and jackets as they carefully uncovered their heads. Wide, searching eyes found her own and their owners breathed out sighs of relief. A few of them cursed, or thanked the universe for their lives. It was a strange moment of contradictions. But Kathryn didn’t pay attention to the contradictions; she paid attention to the people.

Near the front of the bus, Harry was pushing himself up off of Tom’s chest with a series of grunts and apologies. Even from back here, Kathryn could see that they both had some cuts on their faces, probably from the shattered windows surrounding them. But they seemed alright; they were moving and speaking normally.

Good kids. Always brave. Never complaining.

Moving on, there was B’Elanna, who had fallen into Chakotay. They were both already standing, checking themselves over and surveying the damage their bus had taken. Kathryn frowned in sympathy; there was certainly a lot of damage to survey. But then she moved her eyes on to the next row.

Kes and Neelix were still holding onto each other, glancing around to everyone else with frightened, glazed eyes. Neither of them, it seemed, were injured. But they were the most shaken of the group. Neelix squeezed his arms a little tighter around Kes as she rested her face into his shoulder. Kes looked like a frightened child, sitting there hardly visible behind the back of her seat.

Kathryn’s frown deepened. It wasn’t right that such a young woman should be involved in something as terrifying and life-changing as this. She should be in college, or working at an entry level job somewhere where it was safer and kinder.

Then again, this type of storm could happen to anyone. That was what made them so dangerous. So terrifying.

Kathryn forced her eyes away from Kes and checked again on Tuvok. He was as sturdy as ever. Giving her a reassuring nod, he promised that she had not harmed him during her fall. Kathryn took him at his word and turned back to the Maquis.

There was only one person unaccounted for - the Doctor. He’d been sitting directly in front of her, and must have fallen at the same time she had. Only, he hadn’t had someone to break his fall on the opposite side of the aisle. 

Kathryn swallowed hard. And as she peeked around the seat, she was afraid of what she’d find.

Her fears were immediately justified. The Doctor lay crumpled on the floor between the two seats, cuts lining his exposed face and hands. His eyes were closed, face pale and slack. Maybe he was just resting. But something told Kathryn that the damage was far more severe than what she could see from her position.

“Doctor?” She called, avoiding a few broken glass fragments as she maneuvered onto the seat above him. She shook his shoulder, but his head only lolled unresponsively. Her hand pulled back quickly, anxious about causing him further harm. 

What if he had a neck injury? Or whiplash? Was whiplash serious? And why wasn’t he waking up? That was definitely serious...right? 

Looking up, she tried to tamp down her panic.

“The Doctor’s hurt,” she said, her voice steadier than she thought it would be.

Her words got everyone’s attention, but especially Kes’. The terrified young girl let go of Neelix and instantly became something else: a medic, a trained emergency worker, a responsible and selfless young woman. She snatched her medical case from under one of the seats and hurried over to take Kathryn’s place beside the Doctor.

Kathryn stood in the aisle leaning on one of the nearby seats for support. Her wrist still ached, begging for attention, but she could ignore it for now. She had to ignore it. Her eyes were locked on Kes and all of the energy in the world couldn’t pull her away.

“He’s hit his head,” Kes announced, carefully turning the Doctor onto his back so she could get a look at the left side of his face. 

There was a lot of red there, and what looked like a deep contusion. Kathryn almost looked away, but found it still impossible to turn away from the macabre sight. He’d been so lively earlier; had sang them through the morning cleanup like he was a character out of a Disney film. But now...

“Doctor?” Kes said, her voice authoritative and strong even as her fingers were gentle on the Doctor’s cheek. “Doctor, can you hear me?”

He shifted slightly. His eyes cracked open, but only to close again with a grimace. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to ease the discomfort in Kathryn’s chest and stomach. It was enough to make Kes smile.

“I’m gonna check you for concussion,” she said softly.

Seeing that Kes had the situation under control, Kathryn forced herself away. She cradled her wrist against her chest and used the other hand to maneuver through the bus as steadily as she could. Her ears were ringing, and she felt a bit nauseous. Not from her own concussion, hopefully, but from the overall emergency.

Kathryn had never liked emergencies. 

“Are you alright?” Neelix asked her as she passed him by.

She nodded despite the ache in her wrist and carried on. B’Elanna and Chakotay were in silent vigil beside one another, probably mourning the damage to their bus and their people. Kathryn let them be, and continued all the way to the front to stand beside Tom and Harry.

“Are you okay, Captain?” Harry asked, repeating Neelix’ concerned question.

She waved him off with her good hand, then took careful hold of his face. Tilting his head, she examined the cuts on his cheek, then Tom’s.

“I think there’s another medkit somewhere around here,” she said softly.

Tom grabbed it from behind the driver’s seat and clicked it open. Kathryn noticed his hands shaking slightly, but she didn’t say anything. The poor guy looked like he was running on adrenaline. Harry, too. 

Adrenaline and determination. That’s all they had left.

“How’s the Doc?” asked Harry, wincing as Tom pressed disinfectant to his injured forehead. 

Kathryn sighed, glancing to the back of the bus. 

“He’s awake now, at least.” She shook her head, wiping at her tired eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Tom asked, genuinely.

“I feel like this is all partly my fault. If I had called off our survey from the beginning...Or if I had listened to that old man last night about the storm...none of this would have happened.”

Tom shut the medkit with a slam, turning to face her completely.

“If anyone’s to blame,” he said, “it’s me. I should’ve turned off as soon as I heard the tornado warning. Should’ve found us a shelter of some kind.”

“Alright,” Harry said, stepping between them with a hand outstretched in either direction. “There’s no point playing the blame game. Captain, you did what you thought you should so we could complete our survey. And Tom, you couldn’t have predicted where the tornado would land. And besides, we’re just as safe here as we are ten miles closer to Kansas City.”

Kathryn wanted to fight with him; wanted to prove that she was a terrible leader and should lose her rank as their so-called ‘captain’. But before she could launch into self pity, someone was suddenly approaching their group: Chakotay.

“Well, Paris,” Chakotay said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, “You’ve had my bus two days and you’ve managed to hit a tornado.”

Kathryn sensed something bitter in his tone, and she didn’t like it. How dare he blame this all on Tom? And if he were joking, she wasn’t laughing. 

And all of a sudden, all of her fear and guilt was being replaced with something else:

Anger.

“Hey,” Kathryn said, spinning around to face Chakotay, “This was not his fault and you know it.”

“Maybe not,” said Chakotay, setting his hands on his hips. “But all I know is that my bus has been totalled, the Doctor has a serious concussion, and we have no way of contacting anyone because every cell phone and radio tower in this wasteland has been torn to shreds.”

Kathryn had never heard Chakotay’s voice so hostile. So challenging.

“Listen,” she snapped, “We all can sit around feeling sorry for ourselves. But right now we need to focus on survival. And we can only do that if we work together. Alright? Commander?”

Her last two words rang throughout the bus. Kathryn caught B’Elanna and Neelix turning swiftly away when they caught her eye, both of them trying to look like they hadn’t been listening to every bit of their conversation. 

Kathryn already regretted her outburst. But honestly, it had done her some good. She felt lighter now; more present. Every bad feeling she’d been holding onto for the past few hours was out of her system and she was ready to get back to work. 

Chakotay, it seemed, had benefited as well. He smiled a sheepish smile, massaging the back of his neck as he avoided her eye. Then, with the usual calm and collected attitude she had come to rely on, he nodded.

“Together,” he promised. 

Tom and Harry got back to fixing each other’s wounds, trying to ignore the little spat they had just witnessed. With them taken care of, Kathryn started back towards her seat; back to Tuvok and the Doctor and cleaning up whatever she could find along the way. But as soon as she took a step into the aisle, Chakotay took hold of her hand (luckily, her good hand). 

“Look, Kathryn...I’m sorry. I was an idiot.”

“We both were.”

They shared a smile, and she realized they were still holding hands. His felt nice; warm, strong...

“Chakotay?” Kes called suddenly, popping her head up.

Letting go of each other’s hands as if on instinct, Chakotay, and Kathryn started toward Kes. They found the Doctor awake, but not alert. His eyes glazed over Kathryn’s, then passed her right by to stare at the ceiling with a furrowed brow. 

“He’s going to need to be observed for the next 24 hours,” Kes explained. “And someone needs to wake him every couple hours to see if he’s responsive. Or, at least, as responsive as he is now.”

They all looked at the Doctor, who had barely heard a word she’d said. The three of them shared a frown. But then Chakotay nodded. 

“Okay,” he said. “We’ll do it in shifts, while the rest of us sleep and eat and try and figure out what to do next. Neelix,” he said, turning, “we’ll need to figure out how much food and water we have. And medicine.”

“Already ahead of you, Chakotay,” Neelix said, showing off a checklist of food items.

“Good.” Chakotay released a breath, giving his broken bus another look over. “Good.”

Something told Kathryn that none of this could be described as ‘good’. But if that’s the word Chakotay wanted to use, then so be it. Maybe it was his way of being an optimist. 

Maybe it was his way of being a leader.

………………. ………………….. …………………. ……………………

“So, Doctor,” Kathryn said, as casually as she could with the Doctor looking at her like she had two heads (which maybe she had, in his view). She sipped her bottle of apple juice and leaned over the back of the seat to watch him, probably looking like an overexcited student on a school trip. “Do you remember that list of words I gave you a few minutes ago?”

He rolled his eyes at her request. 

“We’re using _your_ medical journal here,” she noted.

“Yes,” he said with a sigh. “However, I never thought my methods would be used against me.”

She shook her head, taking another sip of her juice. She was glad he was awake. Glad he was talking. God, for a minute this morning she’d been worried he might never wake up, he’d looked so hurt. So unresponsive. 

She shook off the memory and forced a smile.

“Don’t dodge the question, Doctor.”

He closed his eyes again with a smaller sigh.

“The words were ‘house, dog, boy, music, hat,” he answered softly.

“Good job.”

He smirked, settling his head deeper into his pillow. Kathryn set her juice down on the seat and maneuvered through the aisle to his side, shaking out the blanket to make sure it was free of glass. Satisfied, she began tucking it over the Doctor.

One of the movements she made with her hand was, apparently, a mistake 

“Argh!” she gasped, her wrist stinging like a sudden insect bite.

The Doctor’s eyes opened blearily, medical instincts kicking in even when he was half conscious.

“Captain?”

Kathryn rested her good hand on his chest to keep him down.

“It’s nothing. You just go to sleep.”

“But...you’re in pain. Are you sure-?”

“Yes, go to sleep,” she whispered, adjusting the blanket more carefully this time. “I’ll be fine.”

With that, the Doctor fell suddenly asleep, his breath slowing almost immediately as his eyes slipped closed. Kathryn breathed out a sigh of relief. She hated going to anyone for help, especially for a stupid injury she should never have gotten. With any luck, she’d be able to handle this on her own and no one would need to know about it.

Kathryn stood to stretch, finding the bus quiet as the evening sky took over the windows. Shades of blue and yellow flickered through the broken glass, shining like diamonds. Kes was asleep a couple rows down, her small feet visible from the aisle Kathryn was stood in. Somewhere else, Neelix, B’Elanna, and Tom were crowded together to eat a dinner of jerky and grapes.

Chakotay appeared out of nowhere, bumping into her from behind with an ‘oop!’ and an apologetic face.

“Excuse me,” he chuckled, “Lost in thought, I guess.”

“You’re fine,” she said, stepping out of the aisle to give him room.

Only, he didn’t walk on past. He stayed beside her, eyes locked on the Doctor. 

“How is he?” he asked.

“He’s still out of it most of the time, but I think he’s getting better.” 

Her voice quieted as Chakotay shuffled into the space between the Doctor’s makeshift bed and the back of the seat in front of him. He knelt on the floor, touching the bandages on the Doctor’s face with a gentle hand. 

“You’ll be okay, Doc,” he said softly. Then, with a frown, he adjusted the blanket to cover the Doctor’s arm more fully. “If we can ever get the damn heating back on…” his voice trailed off as he realized Kathryn was still watching him.

She blushed, turning her eyes away. But then she dared to look back at him. She dared to speak.

“You all must be very close.”

“Yes,” he said, shifting back into the aisle beside her. “I feel responsible for them. Even Kes and Neelix; it feels like they’ve been with us for a lot longer than they have. When you do the kind of work we do...you get close to people really fast.”

Kathryn suddenly remembered Seska. Her leaving must have caused pain in the others that she hadn’t noticed before. But she chose not to bring this up just now; Chakotay looked exhausted enough.

“I feel the same way about my team,” said Kathryn. “Like I really am their ‘captain’.”

Chakotay’s eyes brightened. 

“Sometimes these guys call me ‘Commander’ if you can believe it,” he joked.

They shared a long, subdued laugh. But it ended abruptly as Chakotay’s eyes landed on Kathryn’s wrist.

“Woah,” he trilled, taking a very gentle hold of her arm, “what happened here?”

“It’s nothing.” She pulled her hand back, but he squeezed just a little tighter to keep her still.

Shoot. She’d almost gotten away with it.

“This looks swollen.” He met her eyes with an unspoken question on his lips. 

Oh damn him and his puppy dog eyes.

“I hurt it this morning, during the storm. Ah!” She squeaked, as his fingers probed her wrist.

“It doesn’t appear to be broken,” he said, “but I think it’s sprained. Hold on - and don’t go anywhere!”

“Where would I go?!” she called, as he disappeared toward the back of the bus. 

She huffed for a moment. Then she sat on the nearest seat, across the aisle from the Doctor she was supposed to be watching, and cradled her wrist with her opposite hand.

Okay, on some level she knew this was important. She knew she shouldn’t dodge help. And who better to help her than Chakotay? 

But really, this wasn’t necessary. She’d fallen out of plenty of trees; she could handle a little sprain.

“This is a compression bandage,” Chakotay said, appearing with said item in his hand. He knelt in front of her and maneuvered her hand into it. “I want you to wear it as much as possible to keep the swelling down. And I’ll ask Neelix if we have any ice left in the cooler.”

“Chakotay, you really don’t need to do this.”

“Yes, I do.” He met her eyes with complete seriousness. “Remember? It’s my thing; I have to help people.”

“Yes, but I don’t need help.”

“You keep saying that,” he smirked, “and then you keep needing help.”

She rolled her eyes, but returned his smile to let him know that she secretly loved this...whatever this was. This dance. This flirtation. This...maybe it was friendship. Or platonic affection. Maybe it was love. Kathryn certainly didn’t know. And at this point, she was too tired to think of what it might be. Too tired to think of anything, actually.

“How about I take over your watch?” Chakotay said, glancing toward the Doctor. “He’s probably out for the night anyway. You should take a nap. We’re having a meeting tonight around 9, if you want to join.”

“Of course,” she said, already lying back in her seat, which was probably actually the Doctor’s or Kes’; she was suddenly so exhausted she didn’t care. “Oh, and Chakotay?”

“Yes?”

She smiled lopsidedly as her eyes flickered shut.

“Thank you for taking care of me and my people.”

He looked around the bus; his beloved bus, possibly ruined because of her survey mission. Because of his kindness. And he smiled.

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I; I took the one less traveled by-”

“And that has made all the difference.” Kathryn smiled as her eyes opened again sluggishly. “Commander Chakotay reads Robert Frost?”

He shrugged, folding a blanket over her.

“Surprised?”

She stared at him for a long moment, as her body melted into the bus seat and the lull of sleep beckoned her by name.

“No,” she murmured. “I don’t think I am.”


	11. The Week of Hell, Part Three

Chapter Eleven  
“The Week of Hell, Part 3”

At some point in this out-of-spacetime period, the front of the bus became a temporary meeting room. Chakotay sat in the driver’s seat, Tom standing beside him with his face covered in small bandages. B’Elanna, Neelix, Tuvok, and Kathryn finished their little circle in the aisle. 

“Is this everyone? Where’s Harry?” Chakotay asked.

“He’s taking a nap,” said Tom. “He spent a few hours fixing holes in the tires outside.”

“And Kes is with the Doctor,” Neelix said, glancing back to double check his statement.

“Alright. Then let’s get down to business.” Chakotay sat up straighter. “We’re gonna send up a flare tonight. God knows if anyone’s going to see it, with how cloudy it is. But it’s worth a try. Tom?”

Tom raised his eyebrows, surprised to be included in the plan. When he’d accepted that Chakotay was, in fact, looking at him, he nodded.

“No problem.”

“I will assist you,” Tuvok said. “I believe I took note of our coordinates, and can help choose the best direction in which to send the flare.”

Tom nodded appreciatively.

“Okay,” Chakotay continued, “And how are bus repairs coming along?”

B’Elanna folded her arms across her chest.

“We’ve got most of the tires fixed. But the exhaust manifold was broken in the storm. We’ll have to fix it with whatever parts we can find, and even then the bus will run on low power. That’s, if we get it up and running at all.” B’Elanna sighed, shaking off these negative thoughts. “On the bright side, the glass is mostly cleaned up; we’ll be able to cover up the windows soon.”

Chakotay nodded. “I’d like that done by nightfall, if that’s possible. Without the heating, it’s going to get pretty cold in here.”

“I can help with that,” Kathryn said. “I’ve already eaten.”

“That brings up a good point,” Chakotay said, looking at Neelix. “Have you gone through our food reserves?”

“Yes,” Neelix dawdled for a moment, shifting from foot to foot. “We definitely have enough for four or five days; we’ve got a lot of emergency food storage. And we can probably make it last a bit longer if we have to.”

“Okay,” Chakotay sighed. He took a moment to himself, almost in a silent vigil of sorts. Then he looked back up at them. “Listen,” he met each of their eyes. “We’ll get through this. Together.”

On his last word, Chakotay’s eyes landed on Kathryn’s. She smiled. And then he smiled.

And then, just as abruptly, they turned away, and the group got to work on the tasks at hand.

………………… …………………. …………………………. …………………

The flare was a gorgeous, hopeful sight that led to the whoops and cheers of everyone onboard this frigid bus. Okay, it may not have been ‘frigid’, but it _was_ so cold that Kathryn still felt a chill as she lay in her makeshift bed for the night. She couldn’t imagine how cold everyone outside must have been - Tom, Tuvok, B’Elanna - but as soon as they got back to their seats, they each cuddled under their blankets.

Pulling her own blanket closer to herself, Kathryn tried to imagine herself in a warmer place. Unfortunately, Harry and B’Elanna hadn’t been able to get the engine back on before nightfall. The windows were covered, but that did little to help with such an airy and metallic box. They would make it through; it was May, after all, not January. But it wasn’t going to be any of their best nights of sleep.

When she adjusted herself on the ‘bed’ for the third time in as many minutes, Kathryn sat up with a frustrated jolt. She was exhausted from how little sleep she’d gotten the past few nights, as well as the emergency of yesterday (or was it earlier today? The days were already slipping together). But she absolutely could not get to sleep right now.

Stretching as she sat up straighter, Kathryn heard a soft voice in front of her: Harry, taking the first night watch to monitor the Doctor. Kathryn leaned forward slightly to listen to him.

“One time I had a concussion,” he said with a short laugh, “it was during a game of basketball, if you can believe it. I still don’t know how it happened.”

Kathryn smiled to herself, and moved over in her seat to see her youngest team member. 

He was sitting facing the aisle, across which the Doctor was sitting up and listening to him with a smile on his face. Kathryn was glad to see them both; after today, she was glad to see anything that resembled normalcy. Anything that wasn’t chaos; wasn't an emergency.

“Oh, hi Captain,” Harry said, noticing her presence. “I’m sorry, did we wake you?”

“No, not at all.” She glanced at her bed and wrapped the blanket tighter around herself. “I can’t seem to get to sleep.”

“Sorry about the heating.” Harry folded his hands in front of himself. “We really tried to fix it before nightfall, but-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Kathryn waved off. She turned to the Doctor and offered him a warm smile. “How are you feeling?”

“You no longer have two heads, so I would say there’s been remarkable improvement.”

“I don’t know,” she joked, “two heads are usually better than one.”

Harry made an effort to laugh at her terrible humor, as did the Doctor. And God, it felt so good to be human again. To make corny jokes and sit up talking into the night, as cold and dark as it was. Her wrist ached and reminded her of how recent the terrible storm was. But other than that, she could really pretend it was in another time; another world.

Suddenly, a voice interrupted their chat - Chakotay, sitting somewhere near the front of the bus.

“Did anybody hear that?!” he called.

The bus went absolutely silent; everyone listened in with all of their power.

And yes, Kathryn did hear something. An engine. A car engine, getting louder as it, presumably, got closer. And then lights flooded their bus; bright, glaring lights that were usually a source of Kathryn’s road rage. 

Well, tonight they were something else entirely. Tonight they were a symbol of hope.

“HEY!” Chakotay screamed excitedly, sprinting out of the bus. He waved his arms like a madman, flagging down the car that had definitely already seen them. “WE’RE HERE!”

He and Kathryn met each other’s eyes through the window, sharing a bright smile. He looked like a big kid out there, jumping up and down to keep himself warm. The lights of the approaching van flooded him like a spotlight, showing off his boyish expression and boundless energy.

Four figures emerged from the van. Kathryn craned her neck to see them, awkwardly kneeling backward on her seat with her blanket wrapped around her legs. And that’s when she noticed something: everyone in the van was wearing dark colors.

And they all had navy beanies.

Fear jolted through her. The group that had robbed them in Missouri, who had tried to steal their GPS equipment and who did manage to steal a cooler...they had worn that same uniform. And now they were here in this unmarked van in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere…

Kathryn’s eyes turned from the van back to Chakotay. One of the figures was approaching him with a determined gait, almost marching. Chakotay held out his hand for a pleasant greeting, and then seemed to realize that something was wrong.

He realized a moment too late.

The figure balled a fist and landed a punch so quickly that Kathryn gasped aloud. Chakotay fell to the ground instantly, dazedly looking up at the night sky as the figures walked right past him.

They were coming toward the bus. They had punched Chakotay, and now they were coming toward the bus.

And dammit, Kathryn was a scientist! She hadn’t been trained in hand-to-hand combat; had barely completed some the required first aid training two years ago. This was not her place. This was not her life.

And yet, now it was.

Two of the people came in through the front door, while the other two entered through the back. Harry, Kathryn, and Tuvok jumped to their feet, eyes locked on the intruders. But none of them moved to do anything about it. What could they do, anyway? Fight them? Get injured themselves? No. They had to protect the Doctor. And as soon as they could, they had to help Chakotay, too. Their little group couldn’t afford more casualties.

“Hey!” Neelix shouted, calling Kathryn’s attention.

The two figures at the front of the bus were stealing food from under his seat; grabbing supplies stashed beside the driver’s chair. They didn’t speak. They didn’t use threats. Just came in and grabbed what they wanted.

Well, B’Elanna wasn’t going to have that.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going with that?” she asked, storming to the front to block the door.

“B’Elanna,” Tom murmured, starting toward her with his eyes locked on the intruders.

“I’m not letting them steal our food, flyboy,” she said, directing her venom toward the towering figures in front of her. “What, did you see our flare? Decide to come and rob someone in need? How generous.”

“Move,” one of the figures said. It was so deadpan that Kathryn could have believed it was actually a robot.

B’Elanna scoffed, crossing her arms.

“Move? Is that the best you’ve got?”

The person rose a hand and tried to hit B’Elanna, but she was ready. Countering their attack, she managed to land a few punches to their torso. Tom grabbed hold of the other person, grabbing them from behind like a little kid sneak-attacking their older sibling. It worked, actually...until the person had the idea to back into a wall. 

Tom’s arms fell off of the person as he doubled over, completely winded.

But all of a sudden, Kathryn remembered something - the two in the back; what were they doing? No one had been watching them.

“Hey!” she yelled, reading the label on the box that one of them was holding. “Come on, medicine? Really? Our doctor has a concussion. At least leave us some pain killers.”

“You are not in a place to make demands,” one of the voices said, a man about a foot taller than Kathryn.

But the other figure was different somehow. They grabbed a hold of the others’ arm, and snatched the supply box out of their hand.

“We do not require medicine,” she said. Her voice was almost as flat as the others’, but there was something of humanity in there. Kathryn knew it. “Let them keep it.”

“Why?”

“It is inefficient to take more than we can store. Leave it.”

The figure dropped the storage container and stormed toward the front of the bus. Harry jumped out of the aisle to get out of their way, then turned to Kathryn with wide, fearful eyes.

Seeing his look of terror filled her with primal rage. How dare these people make _her_ intern afraid? How dare they try and steal medicine from a group of emergency workers? Who the hell did they think they were?

“Get the food,” one of the three in the front said. “And let’s get out of here.”

“Not so fast,” said a sudden voice - Chakotay, appearing in the doorway. His cheekbone was bloodied and his outfit was covered in dust. But his eyes were wide awake.

“Dammit!” the voices shouted almost in sync. “Get out of our way.”

“What if I don’t?” Chakotay challenged.

But even B’Elanna had realized at this point that these people weren’t to be tested.

“Chakotay,” she said quietly. 

“You don’t want to challenge us,” one of the towering figures said. “We aren’t afraid of conflict.”

“Quin,” the woman in the back of the bus stated suddenly. Her voice was so authoritative that Kathryn actually jumped. “We have what we require. We should return to the van.”

“You’ve gone soft. Too soft,” one of the robbers snorted, then turned back to Chakotay. “Get out of our way. Now.”

Chakotay looked at B’Elanna. His expression was so downtrodden that it was almost heartbreaking. But he did step out of the way. He did let them past.

“You can keep that one!” the figure called ‘Quin’ called from outside, gesturing to the woman standing beside Kathryn. “She’s not one of us anymore.”

“Quin!” Seven shouted, starting toward the back of the bus.

But by the time she’d unlatched the door; by the time she’d run out into the Kansas night...the van was tearing back across the plains. A few whoops and hollers carried across the wind.

And then, just like that, the robbers were gone, leaving one of their own members behind.

……………….. ………………….. ……………….. ……………………….

Kathryn blinked many times in the next moment. She didn’t even know where to begin with this one. There was a woman - possibly a very dangerous woman - standing outside of their bus like a lost puppy dog. The bus was reaching new levels of ‘cold’ with both of the doors open. Their entire crew was shaken up. And Chakotay was still bleeding.

So Kathryn took a deep breath. And she did what she always did when she felt out of her depth.

She turned to Tuvok.

Luckily, he was steady as ever. Well, perhaps not ‘as ever’, but he was a great deal steadier than she was. He stood slowly and readjusted the supply boxes, wrapping them tightly back into their places so they wouldn’t fall. Then, he took gentle hold of Kathryn’s arm.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

She nodded automatically. He knew she was lying, and she knew he knew that she was lying. But it felt good, sometimes, to sound braver than you felt. 

“I’m going to go talk to her,” she said, surprising even herself.

“Are you sure that is wise?” Tuvok asked, tilting his head. “She may be dangerous.”

“I don’t know about that.”

It was true. Kathryn _didn’t_ know. But she’d been brought up on the idea that it was best to err on the side of kindness, not hostility. So she made her way toward the back of the bus.

Expectedly, someone grabbed her shoulder before she could get very far away. Unexpectedly, it was not Tuvok.

It was Harry Kim.

“Captain,” he cautioned.

“I’m alright, Harry.” She flashed a smile. “You can keep watch if you must.”

Harry looked at her for a long time, then sighed. He let her go, and then followed her to the back of the bus.

Seven looked so lost out there, standing in the middle of a field staring into the night. She’d taken off her face mask and let her beanie fall mostly off of her head to reveal a tightly wound blonde bun. She stood there for a long time, watching the van disappear into the dark night. And when she did finally turn around, she stopped immediately.

Her face was unreadable, and not just because of the poor lighting from the portable emergency lights they’d filled the bus with. She didn’t look sad, even though her situation would certainly warrant it. She didn’t even look angry. She just looked...lost.

“What’s your name?” Kathryn asked. She folded her arms across her chest and watched Harry do the same beside her. Honestly, did Kansas even know it was May? It was so damn cold out…

“Seven,” the woman said simply.

Kathryn tilted her head, unsure if she’d heard correctly.

“Seven?”

“Yes.”

Kathryn waited an extra second to see if the woman would say something else, but nothing else came. She shared a look with Harry, whose teeth were chattering, then turned back to Seven.

“You can spend the night with us, in our bus. We’re a band of misfits anyway; might as well accept one more.”

Seven furrowed her brow, slipping the beanie into her hoodie pocket.

“You would allow me to stay after I was part of the group that robbed you?” Her voice was softer as she said this. Kathryn heard something there that tugged at her heartstrings; like this girl hadn’t experienced genuine kindness in a long, long time.

But she couldn’t _say_ all of this to a virtual stranger. So instead, Kathryn bundled her arms closer to her chest and made another pathetic joke.

“If it gets us back into the bus faster,” she smiled. “Come on, Seven; we can talk about this inside.”

Seven thought over the offer for a long time (long enough for Kathryn’s fingers to go numb). And then, almost imperceptibly, she nodded.

………………. ……………………… …………………….. ……………………..

“What is _she_ doing on our bus?” Chakotay asked, as Kathryn pushed him gently into one of the unoccupied seats, blocking his path to the aisle with a medkit.

“I’ll tell you, if you’ll let me fix that,” she gestured toward the still-bleeding wound on his cheek.

He bit his bottom lip, casting a glance from Kathryn to Seven. Then, hesitantly, he nodded.

Kathryn set the medkit onto the seat beside him and pulled out a few antiseptic wipes. “I told her she could stay the night.”

“You what?!” Chakotay made to sit up, but Kathryn’s grip on his shoulder held him down.

“What else was I supposed to do, Chakotay? Send her out into the night?”

Under his breath, he murmured, “That’s what her friends did.”

Kathryn stood up straighter, tilting her head at him.

“And that’s exactly why _we’re_ not going to do that.”

He met her eyes in a way that felt like a challenge. But then he looked away with an expression as unreadable as Seven’s.

Kathryn tilted his head with a few fingers on his chin, examining the wound. She dabbed at some of the blood with one of the wipes in her hand and braced a hand on his shoulder as he jerked back with a hiss of pain.

“Hold still,” she hummed.

More gently, she cleaned the cut and disposed of the dirtied wipes. He was quiet as she worked; they both were. Kathryn wasn’t sure if it was because there was nothing to say or because neither of them wanted to say what was on their mind. She allowed the silence to continue until she reached into the medkit again to search for a bandage.

“I’m sorry I didn’t consult you about Seven,” she said quietly. 

He balled his fist as she set the bandage against his face. “At least you didn’t adopt one of the ones who actually hit me.”

“I didn’t _adopt_ her, Chakotay.” Kathryn smiled as she pressed the medical tape against his cheek, securing the bandage in place. “And you’re not one to talk about bringing in strays. Look at what you did for my crew, and Kes and Neelix.”

“At least none of you tried to attack us before you asked for passage.”

He flashed a quick smile up to her, but somehow she saw past it. She saw that he was still irritated, and still hurting from his encounter with Seven’s group. Kathryn met his eyes and set a hand on his leg.

“I’ll keep an eye on Seven,” she said, “I promise, no one else on your crew is going to get hurt.”

His eyes flickered to her hand, which she noticed was probably resting on his leg a _little_ too long. She removed it, and watched him carefully. But he only sat up straighter in his seat and closed up the medkit.

“I think it’s time we get to sleep,” he said. “Neelix said he'll watch the Doctor for the next few hours.”

“I’ll get Seven set up in front of my seat,” said Kathryn.

She stood, maneuvering into the aisle with her good hand braced on the back of the seat. But before she could get to work, she paused.

“Chakotay?” Her lips softened into a smile. “I’m sorry I’ve caused you so much trouble.”

He stared into space for a moment. Then, with a soft smile of his own, he looked up at her with those puppy dog eyes.

“I wouldn’t call it trouble. It’s certainly been a roller coaster. But you know?” His eyes glistened in the glow of the portable lights. “I’ve always loved a good roller coaster.”

Kathryn’s chest lightened. And with that feeling, that warmth, that joy, she got to work making Seven’s bed and her own. 

She slept better that night than any other on this bus of theirs. And, finally, nothing woke her from her dreams until sunshine and birdsong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all know I couldn't leave Seven out of this! Also, 'Quin' is a play on the Borg Queen, if that didn't come across XD i'm having so much fun writing this, you have no idea


	12. The Week of Hell, Part Four

Chapter Twelve  
“The Week of Hell, Part Four”

“What do you want for breakfast, Seven?” asked Harry.

It was...interesting, having Seven onboard. She hadn’t complained once about the cold (which made her the only one). And now, as she, Kathryn, Harry, and Neelix sat for their breakfast feast, she seemed almost confused by the array of foods. Kathryn wasn’t exactly sure why; there was nothing out of the ordinary here. But Harry, bless him, was eager to make the woman feel welcome.

“We’ve got pop tarts - cold pop tarts, unfortunately,” said Harry. “And then there are apples, strawberries - ugh!” He picked out two that had white beards and tossed them out the open window. “Nevermind the strawberries.”

Seven turned from one option to another, swiveling her neck in an almost mechanical way.

“For the past few weeks, I have only eaten ration packs,” she explained. “It is difficult to decide what my first ‘real’ meal shall be.”

“Well,” Harry said, grabbing a pop tart, “I’d try a bit of everything, then.”

“Er,” Neelix interjected, “maybe not _everything_. We do have a limited food supply.”

He laughed anxiously, which made Kathryn’s heart skip a beat. It was a stark reminder of their situation: stuck in the middle of nowhere with a lot of people and a limited amount of supplies. B’Elanna was hopeful about the bus situation. But still, it was chilling to go from an ordinary life in the suburbs to rugged survival within a week.

“I will have an apple,” Seven decided.

“I hope that’s not to keep me away,” said a sudden voice.

“Hello, Doctor,” Kathryn smiled, as he appeared in the aisle beside her. “It’s nice to see you up.”

“Rule one of recovery: a body that moves is a body that improves.”

Seven raised an eyebrow, but took a bite of her apple without comment. Harry, Kathryn, and Neelix smiled at the Doctor’s joke with shaking heads, just glad to have the team on the mend again. Bandaged and bruised, they were healing. 

No one was going to need the emergency room this time.

“So, Seven,” the Doctor said, snatching a bottle of orange juice from Neelix’ food supply box. “Your group gave us quite a scare last night.”

“Let the woman eat, Doc!” Harry quipped light-heartedly. 

“I apologize for the group’s behavior,” said Seven, apparently undisturbed by the Doctor’s comment. “I only meant to join them to obtain resources; we were never meant to harm anyone or steal from people who had less than ourselves.”

“Well,” Neelix said with a tilt of the head, “that’s...admirable. In it’s own way.”

“Wait.” Harry lowered his pop tart. “Are you like Robin Hood? Steal from the rich, give to the poor?”

Seven took a bite of her apple. Kathryn knew she only did so to put off answering the question.

“A better description is that we steal from places that have been abandoned and keep what we find for ourselves.” 

Kathryn and the others shared uncomfortable glances. This was far, far out of her or Harry’s area of expertise. It may even have been extreme for the Maquis, who were used to desperate people in desperate situations. Kathryn didn’t blame her; God only knew what her life was like or what kind of adversity she faced. But that didn’t make it easy to know what to say. Or to know what not to say.

So, Kathryn said nothing.

“It is a very efficient system,” Seven noted, “Nothing goes to waste.”

Neelix nodded, trying to be encouraging as always.

“That’s very true.”

“Waste not, want not,” Harry added.

Kathryn looked over at the Doctor, who seemed to be wondering the same thing: where had this poor woman come from, and how were they going to help her out of this survival mindset she had been forced into?

………… ………………… ……………………. …………………………..

Being outside felt so ridiculously good that Kathryn almost cried when she felt the sunshine on her skin. The bus was a nice and homey place, with all of them getting along so quickly and so well. But being trapped inside a metal box was exactly why she hadn’t gone into business or one of those other office jobs. She needed to be out in the fresh air; smell the grass and feel the wind in her hair. 

Closing her eyes, Kathryn took a long moment to breathe in; breathe out. 

“Captain,” B’Elanna said, approaching fast with no idea that she was waking Kathryn out of an almost reverent state. She had oil stains all over her face and tank top. Already it looked like she’d put in a day’s work and it was hardly nine O’clock. “I think I’m onto something with the exhaust manifold, but I’ll need a piece of your GPS equipment.”

Kathryn raised an eyebrow. She was about to ask what the heck a GPS monitor could possibly give to an exhaust manifold when Tuvok appeared with the monitor in hand. His expression was impressed, and it gave Kathryn a little bit of encouragement.

“I believe,” he said, “Miss Torres’ idea is ingenious.”

B’Elanna smiled softly at the compliment, then turned to Kathryn. She was so excited to explain it all that she was almost bouncing on her heels.

“See, one of the pipes on the exhaust manifold is broken. But the legs on your GPS monitor are very similar in size and shape. If I can manipulate the metal just a little bit, I can get it to plug the hole in the exhaust manifold and get our engine up to full capacity.”

Tuvok perked his head up.

“Have you discovered whether the material will be adequate to avoid fire?”

B’Elanna’s smile dampened at that, but she maintained her confidence.

“The monitor uses a different metal than the manifold, but neither of them is flammable. As long as we set it up properly, there shouldn’t be any problems.”

“Shouldn’t?” Kathryn asked.

B’Elanna gave Tuvok a quick wide-eyed look.

“It will be successful,” he said with a fervent nod. “And if it’s not, we will have time to catch the error before it becomes a hazard.”

Kathryn gave them each a look. And maybe it was giving in to fate, or letting the universe take control, but she shrugged and gave them her blessing.

“Go for it. Maybe we’ll finally get back on the road today.”

“Thank you, Captain,” B’Elanna said, then tore off back to the bus to start the work.

Tuvok stood by Kathryn for an extra moment. They stared at the bus. They stared at the surrounding nothingness of the Kansas plains. They stared at the blue sky with the innocent white, fluffy clouds, remembering the terrible storm that had caused so much damage.

“Tuvok, I’m so sorry about all of this,” she said with a sigh. “First I agree to move our team onto a bus full of strangers, then we survive a tornado, now we’re stuck in the middle of nowhere...you should be home, with your wife and your children.”

Tuvok shifted closer to her. He took a moment to gather his thoughts. Kathryn could only wonder what he thought of her at this point. But when he spoke, it was with so much kindness that her heart melted.

“I agree that it has been more eventful than we expected.” He raised a brow, but then turned his wise eyes toward Kathryn with a gentle smile. “However, you do not need to worry about my wife and children - they do not expect me home for another three weeks. And, being completely candid, I live in hope that my children will be as adventurous as you, or as selfless as the Maquis. And I hope that if my wife is given an opportunity to live as deeply as I have in these past couple of weeks, that she will take it without hesitation.”

Kathryn blinked and felt tears in her eyes. She held them back, satisfying herself by taking hold of Tuvok’s hand tightly into her own.

“Thank you, Tuvok.” She sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder as she watched B’Elanna and Harry working on the bus; Tom and Kes snacking in the shade; Neelix delivering bottles of water. “I almost wish…” she started to say, then shook off her thoughts.

She had been about to say that she wanted to stay like this forever. As ridiculous as that sounded. As mad as she must have been. Obviously she wouldn’t miss the constant stream of obstacles. But she would miss the people. She was so close to them already. It felt strange that in a matter of hours, or days, or weeks, they’d all just go their separate ways. The Maquis would continue their mission. She would continue her life as a scientist back in Indiana, maybe with a stint at her company’s HQ in San Francisco. 

But dammit if she didn’t want to stay here on this road trip for a lot longer than that. 

So she settled her head deeper into Tuvok’s shoulder and tried to feel every bit of sunshine heat that touched her skin. Tried to hear every jolt of laughter from the bus; see every smile. 

Live in this moment. Because it was surely not going to last forever.

………….. ……………………. ………………… ………………… 

Hours later, Kathryn found herself outside again. This time, she was walking with a very unamused-looking Seven, who wore a dark hoodie even in the heat of the noontime Kansas plain.

“You do not trust me,” Seven said flat out.

Kathryn slowed her pace, lowering the binoculars she’d been using to look at the young woman beside her. Seven kicked at the dust with an old sneaker. She almost reminded Kathryn of one of her cousins, back when she’d been a teenager. The same young, weary face. The same self-doubting attitude.

“What makes you say that?” asked Kathryn.

“If you trusted me, you would not stand guard around me 24/7.”

Kathryn hid the smile that tried to force its way onto her lips; it wouldn’t help and it surely wouldn’t make Seven feel understood.

“I’m not standing guard around you, believe me. I just thought you might want to join me on my walk outside. It’s good to breathe in the fresh air.”

“The air here is not ‘fresh’,” Seven grunted. “It is sandy, and filled with particulate matter.”

Kathryn decided not to speak again until she had a chance to think very carefully. Obviously Seven was going through a difficult time, and could be set off by any number of topics. So Kathryn continued to observe the world through her binoculars, letting the other woman walk beside her in her own sulky manner.

Sulky, until they reached the shaded side of the bus. Seven stepped into the cooler air instantly, fanning herself. Kathryn almost remarked on the fact that she was wearing a hoodie _and_ complaining of the heat, but she held herself back. Instead, she directed her attention to the Doctor, who was leaning on the wall of the bus staring out at the nothingness in the distance.

“Enjoying the view?” Kathryn joked.

The Doctor smiled toothlessly, squinting his eyes as he looked toward her. She wondered what he was thinking, and why he had such a peculiar expression. But then he suddenly raised a hand to his head.

And then he suddenly crouched down, holding his head in both hands.

“Doctor?” Seven said with a jolt of energy. She knelt beside him before Kathryn could even call his name, and had a hand on his shoulder that was gentle and kind; a far cry from the woman who had just been walking with Kathryn. “Are you alright?”

“Yes,’ he said, lowering one hand to reveal a grimacing expression. “I felt a bit lightheaded for a moment there. And the headache is returning.”

“He requires ibuprofen and dramamine,” Seven said with a sharp look to Kathryn. 

Her voice held so much authority that Kathryn almost hopped right to it without second thought. But the Doctor raised a stopping hand as he sat down.

“I’ll be fine in a minute. Although,” he winced as he adjusted himself on the hard ground, “perhaps just the ibuprofen?”

“I’m on it,” said Kathryn.

She hurried back onto the bus and rifled through the first medkit she found. Luckily, they were still fully stocked in that department; plenty of pain meds and bandages. Hopefully they wouldn’t need them for much longer, but who knew with this adventure of theirs. 

Kathryn started back outside, but glanced out the window first. She saw Seven there, kneeling on the ground with an expression of concern and care. It was the first time since her group had left her that she had shown any real emotion. Seven pulled off her hoodie and wrapped it around her waist, murmuring something to the Doctor that made him laugh.

Kathryn couldn’t help the smile that came to her own face. Already this young woman, who yesterday had been a complete stranger, was helping. She was being kind. She was adapting to these strange circumstances which life had placed her in. 

Kathryn hurried the rest of the way to the Doctor’s side, and was met with Seven’s outstretched hand.

“Allow me,” Seven said.

For a moment, Kathryn only blinked, wondering what she was asking. Then, clearer in the head, she handed over the medicine and bottle of water.

Seven took one of the pills out of its case and handed it to the Doctor. “You must take one to two pills every four to six hours.”

“Seven,” he sighed, “I’m a doctor. I know how to take ibuprofen. I can draw you the structural formula too, if you want.”

Seven raised an eyebrow.

“There is a great deal of difference between a structural formula and medicinal dosage-”

“Seven!” he said, his arms outstretched.

She reluctantly handed him the bottle of water, furrowing her brows and watching him like a hawk. He rolled his eyes and swallowed the medicine, then took an extra sip of water for good measure.

“How did I do, ‘Doctor Seven’?”

She tilted her head.

“Satisfactory. However, you failed to note the time at which you took the medication, which will make it difficult to know-”

“I’m going back to the bus,” Kathryn said, giving them each a smile. 

Shaking her head, Kathryn was true to her word. For some reason, she just felt...good. Like everything was alright, even though nothing was alright. They were still lost in the middle of Kansas. Her survey was all but forgotten. Half of the crew had injuries or aches from the accident yesterday. 

And yet, when she stepped onto the bus, she was still wearing that smile. It apparently shined so brightly that it caught Chakotay’s attention.

“You’re in a good mood,” he said, walking her back to her seat.

“I am. You know, I just watched Seven and the Doctor bantering like they’ve known each other all their lives.” She shook her head. “It’s amazing.”

“It is,” Chakotay noted, “Especially since last night we thought she was going to rob us. It’s almost _too_ amazing.”

Kathryn started to launch into a defense for Seven, or an argument against his rather harsh words, but he started first.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean that.”

An awkward silence passed between them. He leaned on her seat for support, licking chapped lips. She didn’t speak for a while, letting him mull over his words a bit longer. 

“Kathryn,” he said softly, pausing until she met his eyes. “I trust you. And if you trust Seven...that’s good enough for me.”

She reached out her right hand.

“Truce?”

“Truce,” he said, shaking her hand with a gentle smile. “On all fronts. I won’t bully Tom about his driving anymore; I promise.”

“And I won’t let anyone else on your bus without your permission.” Kathryn looked out the window and found the Doctor and Seven’s arms intertwined as she helped him toward the bus. “She really is proving herself. She even helped Harry and B’Elanna with the engine.”

Chakotay leaned over to look out the same window as she, until his breath tickled her cheek. She tried not to let it show that her heart beat quicker. Tried not to study the stubble on his chin, or stare at the hand resting on the back of the seat in front of her.

“You’re right,” he said finally. He turned his eyes to meet hers, and she found that he was only inches away. “I don’t think you’ve been wrong about anything in your life; have you?”

She took in a breath, a little too quickly, then smirked.

“I wouldn’t say that. But...I do happen to make some pretty good choices now and then, yes.”

He smiled, and held her gaze for just long enough that she wondered what he was thinking.

Wondered if he was thinking the same thing as her.

…………….. ………………. ………………….. …………………………...

Late that afternoon, the engine finally turned over. The Maquis whooped and cheered. Harry, Tom, and Kathryn whooped and cheered. And Tuvok and Seven smiled softly to themselves (in a way that Kathryn took to mean that they were each excited beyond belief). 

Thus, the period which came to be known as The Week of Hell ended. They came out of it battered, bruised, concussed, dirty, and hungry. But they came out of it with new friends, new understandings, and new energy for the path ahead.

Oh, you didn’t think a tornado would stop Captain Janeway’s scientific expedition, did you? No; they decided right then and there, as Tom pulled off of the road they’d parked on to escape the storm, that they were in this for the long haul. Whatever happened, they would complete this survey. Whatever happened, they would reach San Francisco.

Whatever happened, they were in it together.


	13. "Refueling in Small Town, U.S.A."

Chapter Thirteen  
“Refueling in Small Town, U.S.A.”

Coffee was the greatest concoction that man had created. Kathryn was certain of it. Not necessarily _this_ coffee, with its biting, sour taste that left her lips pursed and struggling to smile off the pain for the waitress. But good coffee: that was humanity’s greatest achievement by far.

She could pretend this was such a brew if she used her imagination. She could pretend this wasn’t a 50s-style diner that had, most likely, never been updated since the real 50s. She could pretend she and Chakotay and B’Elanna were sitting at a booth in a nice place; a place with food that wasn’t cold by the time it reached the table, and ketchup bottles that weren’t older than Harry.

On second thought, Kathryn’s imagination wasn’t _quite_ strong enough for all that.

“Refill on the coffee?” the waitress asked. She had a kind smile, so Kathryn let her down easy.

“No thank you; I’ve gotta watch the caffeine,” Kathryn lied. She’d had about twice as much coffee as this every morning for half her life. But luckily the waitress didn’t know that.

Chakotay, apparently, _did_ know.

“That bad?” he whispered.

Kathryn nudged his arm, shaking her head. She was going to respond when she noticed B’Elanna’s horrified face peeking up from her banana pancakes. At least, Kathryn _thought_ it was banana. Brown bananas, perhaps. At least a week old.

“Chakotay’s got a knack for picking the worst restaurant in every town,” she murmured, tossing an Oscar-award winning smile to the waitress as the woman passed by. “Sometimes we place our bets as to whether one of us will get food poisoning or not.”

“Oh, come on,” said Chakotay. He crossed his arms. “That was _one_ time.”

“Are you forgetting what happened in Dallas?”

“That was not my fault,” Chakotay sat up straight. “You were the one who ordered your steak ‘rare’. That’s on you.”

Kathryn laughed at their banter, scooping some more eggs into her mouth. Real food tasted so, so good right now. Even cold real food. They’d lived two (or was it three?) days on yogurt and granola bars, pretzels and jerky. Now she had eggs. Real, stove-cooked eggs. Potatoes. Bacon. It was almost enough to bring a tear to her eye.

“So tell me,” she said, dabbing at her mouth with a napkin. “How many places have you been with the Maquis? Coast to coast?”

“Pretty much,” said B’Elanna. “That old bus has been good to us.”

As if hearing her words, the bus suddenly pulled into the parking lot outside. Kathryn found herself drawn to it, as if it had become a portable home in these past two weeks. As if it had become _her_ home.

“Here comes trouble,” she said.

Harry, Tom, and Neelix were coming into the restaurant, joking and laughing about something. They greeted Kathryn’s group and sat at the booth behind them, still chuckling to each other.

“Paris,” Chakotay called, spinning around. “You have the keys?”

“They’re on the bus. Tuvok’s watching over the supplies. Oh, and Seven is making a list of supplies we might need soon. Now that we’ve finally got gas in the tank, we’ll be able to start off toward Colorado.”

It was funny. In all the commotion and emergencies, Kathryn had almost forgotten why they were out here in the first place: the survey. They’d make two more stops in Kansas, then head into Colorado. The mountains made her nervous, but Tom was sure he could navigate them perfectly fine.

Kathryn knew Chakotay was wary of this, but he didn’t say anything. He really was holding to his promise not to second-guess Tom, even when he might have had reason to. 

“I’m gonna head back to the bus,” Kathryn said, standing and leaving the money for her meal with Chakotay. “I need to review some of my notes; see if I remember how I’ve set up my charts and things. Harry-” She handed him her wallet and gave him a close eye. “Guard this with your life.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Harry said with a mock salute. It faltered, as did his smile, when he realized what he’d said. “I mean, er, Captain.”

Kathryn only smiled.

…………………………. …………………….. …………………………………….

Surprisingly, the question “Who will go on the supply run?” didn’t have many takers. Maybe it was because Seven was the one offering, and Kathryn feared that many of the crew didn’t trust her yet. Or maybe it was because this town was about four streets long and every business looked abandoned. 

Whatever the reason may have been, the outcome was the same: they had a lot of shopping to do and nobody who wanted to do it. So Kathryn rolled her eyes and gave Chakotay a pleading look. He stood without a second’s delay.

“Alright,” Chakotay said. “Neelix, Harry: you two go to the grocery store. Get as much food as you can find; we’ve got a lot of hungry mouths around here. Tom, Kes, Seven: you three go to the pharmacy or general store or whatever they’ve got around here. Seven’s list is pretty extensive, but remember to buy soap and shampoo if nothing else; we don’t want to smell like dog’s breath if we get stuck in the mountains.”

Harry’s head perked up. “You don’t actually think that’s gonna happen, do you?” 

Chakotay gave him an encouraging smile that Kathryn saw right through.

“It’s always best to be prepared, Harry,” he said.

After the week they’d had, everybody knew exactly what Chakotay meant.

………………. ………………… ………………….. ……………………….

“ _Some folks like to get away, take a holiday from the neighborhood._ ” the Doctor sang, then nodded to Seven.

She stared at him for a long moment. Then, with a sigh, she sang:

“ _Hop a flight to Miami Beach, or to Hollywood_.”

“ _But I’m taking a Greyhound on the Hudson River line_.” The Doctor made a gesture, “Now, both of us.”

Seven rolled her eyes, but joined him for the next line:

“ _I’m in a New York state of mind_.”

Kathryn clapped for the duo. Seven had turned out to be an incredible singer. And the music helped their long journey across the plains go by much faster.

Not everyone, however, was enthused.

“We are not,” Tuvok said, staring at the words of a page he’d been trying to read for the past ten minutes, “anywhere near the state nor city of New York. We are, in fact, approximately 1500 miles away.”

Neelix spun around, sitting up on his heels with his hands braced on the back of his seat.

“They’re just having some fun, Mr. Tuvok. I happen to like the music.”

“So do I,” said Kes, nodding fervently as she, too, spun around in her seat.

Tuvok lifted his eyes.

“I normally enjoy music as well. However, it is unwise to sing or play loud music while someone is driving on a perilous roadway.”

Tom glanced at them in his rearview mirror.

“I used to drive down the interstate blasting rock and roll,” he said. “And what about this road is perilous? There’s literally nothing to crash into.”

Tuvok raised an eyebrow.

“There are a multitude of ways a car may be involved in an accident that do not involve any other objects. A slick road, for example. Or an unexpected hole in the asphalt. Or perhaps-”

“You know,” Chakotay said, carefully turning toward the aisle and giving them each a look, “Maybe Tuvok does have a point. You should all at least face forward, just in case.”

“Thank you, Commander,” Tuvok said with a nod.

Tom scoffed, but didn’t comment. Chakotay and Tuvok were right and everyone knew it; nobody wanted to end up injured again. 

The Doctor decided to pause their sing-a-long, giving Seven an apologetic smile. She didn’t seem too bothered. Actually, she looked relieved. Like Tuvok, she returned to reading something she’d found in one of the supply bins, so quickly that her eyes darted back and forth across the page.

Kathryn leaned over in her seat toward the Doctor. 

“I’m glad you’re feeling better, Doctor.”

“As am I.” He looked suddenly at her wrist. “What about you? I never got the opportunity to examine your hand.”

“I’m surprised you remember that.” She held her wrist, which was still wrapped in a compression bandage. “Chakotay looked it over; it’s just a minor sprain. Nothing for you to worry about.”

“Worrying is my _job_ ,” the Doctor noted. “But...perhaps I’ll allow Mr. Chakotay to handle this case.”

He gave Kathryn a smile that had some kind of a meaning behind it. Was he...was he inferring that there was something between herself and Chakotay? Was he trying to say that Chakotay wanted to spend more time with her? What did that smile mean?!

Kathryn responded with an innocent smile, pretending that she had no idea what he was talking about. Because there was _nothing_ to talk about. She and Chakotay were friends, if they were even that. 

And yet…

Kathryn found herself blushing. And it wasn’t because she was worried that the crew was starting to talk, or spread rumors, or notice things. It was because...well, it was because _she_ was starting to notice things. The little bursts of joy she felt whenever Chakotay spoke. The increase in her heart rate when he started a conversation with her. The strange comfort she found in his presence, though she’d only known him a short while.

But she couldn’t have a crush! Not on him. It was probably just a silly little roadtrip-induced fantasy. Her adrenaline was up higher than usual, and it was messing with her brain somehow. When she got some more fresh air, this nonsense would stop. 

Kathryn satisfied herself with this thought, and settled back into her seat with more relaxed shoulders. And yet she wasn’t satisfied with this. 

Because a part of her didn’t want this so-called nonsense to stop.

A part of her wanted this all to be real. Tangible. Actualized.

…………… ………………………. ……………………. ………………..

Miles 800 and 900 went by without any disasters. Oh, Harry spilled some juice all over the dusty ground and got an irritated reprimand from Tuvok about ‘not wasting food supplies’. And B’Elanna accidentally banged her elbow right into Chakotay’s midriff as he passed by her seat. 

But other than that, they were one big happy family on a big happy roadtrip. And that made Kathryn smile from ear to ear. When they’re bus passed over the Colorado border late that evening, it was with a roar of applause. Out of Kansas. Far from home. Still so much road in front of them.

Kathryn was ready for this journey to continue. Ready for mile 1000, and more.

Or, at least, she believed that she was ready.


	14. "Here Begins a New Life"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is ridiculously shippy and it was a pleasure to write. i hope you enjoy!

Chapter Thirteen  
“Here Begins a New Life”

Oh, to be in the woods. To look up and see the treetops swaying in the breeze, as squirrels leapt from one to another and birds soared overhead. To slowly scan the area with your eyes and feel your heartbeat steady; as if the forest were your home and you were finally there.

Kathryn was in paradise. The spruces and pines surrounding her were towering figures of endurance and strength and majesty. She’d loved them since she was a little girl, always preferring evergreens to those temporary deciduous trees. Sure, autumn’s colors were pretty. But for a tree to keep its leaves; keep going, even through the dead of winter...that was truly spectacular. Not even she could do that.

She heard a twig break behind her and spun around, but it was only Chakotay. He cringed bashfully, wordlessly apologizing for breaking her trance. She couldn’t be mad at him. 

She couldn’t be mad here.

“Oh, Chakotay,” she hummed, turning in a circle so that she could see everything. “This is my happy place.”

“I can tell.”

They met each other’s eyes and smiled. It was a perfect day; just warm enough that Kathryn could get away with just a tank top and shorts, while the forest provided a comfortable coolness. Chakotay took a few steps deeper into the woods, glancing back to check that the bus was still on the side of the road where they’d left it. 

“Hey, Kathryn,” he said, looking up at the trees, “how do you tell them apart?”

She grinned ear to ear, her heartbeat quickening. Trying not to scare him off with her enthusiasm, she swallowed and took a breath. But oh goodness did she love talking about this stuff. 

“Okay, so do you see that tree over there? With the long skinny needles?”

“Yes.”

“That one is a pine. Their needles grow in little clusters, can you see?”

“Oh, yeah! I see it now.”

He smiled as he nodded his head up and down, as if shaking the tree’s hand in a greeting. He set his hands on his hips, creating a perfect gap between his arm and body for Kathryn to sneak her arm through. 

She did, with a blush, and took hold of his upper arm. It was muscular and strong, and she tried not to feel uncomfortable with their closeness. She tried to embrace the ridiculous energy she felt in these woods.

“And over here,” she guided him to the next tree, “this one is a spruce. It’s easy to get these confused with fir trees, but I’ll show you a trick.”

She stood on tip toe, reaching up toward one of the lower branches. But reaching for tall things had never been her forte, and even as she grunted with the effort, her hands came up empty.

At least Chakotay was there to come to the rescue. 

“Here, allow me,” he said. 

He easily plucked a small piece off of the twig, containing a line of about 10 needles. He handed it to Kathryn, who thanked him with a bashful smile.

She plucked off one of the needles and handed one to him, keeping one for herself before letting the rest of the twig drop to the forest floor. Standing in front of him, she rolled the needle between her thumb and forefinger.

“Spin it in your fingers like this.”

“Okay,” he said, tilting his head curiously.

“Keep that in mind and...I’ll be right back.” She danced off suddenly, searching the area for a long moment. 

Chakotay watched her, still rolling the needle in his fingers. A smile appeared on his face as she continued her search; a smile that grew and grew until he was nearly laughing at her odd behavior.

“Ah!” she exclaimed, snatched a needle from a tree ten yards away. Bounding back to him, she handed off one of these needles. “Okay, now try to do the same with this one.”

He did try. But his brow furrowed, before he met her expectant gaze.

“This one’s more difficult to spin,” he said.

“Exactly!” she said with a wide grin. God, she probably looked insane. But he knew her well enough by now, right? To know that she wasn’t completely out of her mind?

“Spruces spin,” she explained. “Firs are flat.”

He chuckled at the mnemonic, looking at the two needles in his hand.

“You learn something new every day,” said Chakotay. “Thank you, Kathryn...you know, I’ve never seen you this excited about something.”

“No?” she dropped the needles to the ground and started through the forest again. Chakotay joined her on her walk, without question or pause. 

“This really is your calling,” he said.

She stopped then and looked at him. Looked at the forest.

“It really is. But, it’s really only meaningful if there’s someone to share it with.”

“Oh?” he smiled in that knowing way that got her every time. “Someone like me?”

Her eyes danced across his face, touching his eyes, his tattoo, his lips. Then she grabbed his arm again and led him through the woods.

“Come on. I’ve still got a survey to complete.”

…………….. …………………. …………………. ………………………...

One Colorado morning, Kathryn woke to an aching neck. In her half-asleep daze, she briefly wondered if they’d been in another accident. It certainly felt like it.

But no; she sat up, slowly, and found the bus carrying on as usual. Tom had gotten an early start on their daily drive. They were in a gorgeous forest filled with spruces and pines, flowers, squirrels threatening to jump into the road but, thankfully, remaining in the brush. Kathryn smiled as she stretched awake, rubbing her shoulder when a zing of pain shot through her upper back.

A smell suddenly entered her nostrils, and she registered a presence. Turning, she found a cup of steaming coffee. 

And behind it, Chakotay.

“One hot cup of black coffee,” he said, handing her the offering. “Just the way you like it.”

Kathryn took the cup with an almost reverent glow lighting up her features. It was piping hot. And, to Kathryn, it smelled like heaven. 

“Thank you.” 

The words didn’t do it justice. She closed her eyes and breathed in the smell of coffee beans; of warmth; of home. She brought the cup to her lips and poured a sip into her greedy mouth. It burned as it touched her tongue. And then the familiar taste of rich, acidic coffee hit her taste buds. 

“Rough night?” he asked, bracing a hand against her seatback as Tom took a corner a little too quickly. “I noticed you wincing as soon as you woke up.”

She smiled, shaking her head.

“It’s fine.”

“Oh don’t worry about insulting the bus,” Chakotay assured her. “We all do, from time to time. I could go for a good night’s sleep in a real bed, too.”

Kathryn looked out the window, at the green trees whizzing past. 

“Why don’t we?” she asked, then turned rapidly toward him. “Only if you want to, I mean. Just a night to stay in a cabin somewhere.”

“Just you and I?” 

“No, no, I mean-”

Heat flooded Kathryn’s cheeks. Oh dammit; she hadn’t meant to imply…

A playful smile came to Chakotay’s face, which dissolved into a laugh. 

“Okay,” he said, “we’ll bring the others.”

Kathryn took another sip of her coffee just to give herself time to think before she spoke again. As she did, she thought over his words. She woke up. And she realized what he’d said.

“You mean we can?”

“Hey,” he said, backing up into the aisle, “we’d all love a day off. And I for one would love a night without having to share a bathroom with ten people.”

“Here here,” Harry said, jumping into their conversation as he rifled through one one of the supply boxes behind Kathryn. 

Kathryn nodded to both of them, then turned to Tuvok.

“Tuvok? What do you think of sleeping in a cabin tonight, instead of the bus?”

Tuvok rarely smiled. But in that moment, his eyes shined as he breathed out a sigh of relief. “That would be a much-needed respite for all of us.”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Kathryn said, gesturing with both arms.

“Then it’s settled.” Chakotay turned to Harry. “Do you think you can find us a decent cabin? Or, maybe multiple cabins actually.”

Harry whipped out his phone so quickly he nearly dropped the box he was carrying.

“It would be my pleasure.”

………….. ……………………. …………………… …………………………

Kathryn hadn’t been _trying_ to have a room alone with the commander. But she wasn’t exactly going to complain about it either. 

They’d found a wonderful cabin with room for them all. It was a cozy place, the kind you only ever saw in movies. Only it was real. And it had a really, really strange way of allocating rooms. The person at the front desk decided who would be where, and there was _no_ talking to them about it. Apparently someone had snuck into someone else’s room, using a carefully crafted lie to get a key, and stolen all of their possessions. Kathryn would have seen this as a turn-off for this specific cabin, if the keyholder wasn’t so adamant that he had this under control now, and that such an event would never, ever, happen again under his watch.

“Mr. Tuvok, Mr. Neelix,” the small man called, eyeing the sign-in sheet from behind a pair of glasses so thick that he could probably see to Jupiter. “You will be in room 5. Up the steps, first door on your right.”

Kathryn shared a frown with Tuvok, who pleaded with his eyes. But there was nothing she could do. Shrugging, she mouthed an apology from behind the hotel-runner’s back. It did little to help Tuvok, as Neelix slapped his back with an enthusiastic smile and talk of ‘staying up all night’ and ‘chatting’.

In the other rooms were B’Elanna and Seven, a duo that would probably have minimal chatter and maximum work output during their stay, Harry and Tom, who slapped each other’s hands in a high-five and then carried on an argument about who got the shower first until they reached their room, and the Doctor and Kes, who gave each other an almost professional nod and aided each other in carrying their bags to the room upstairs. 

When she reached her room, Kathryn paused at the door to look around. There were two beds, at least, queen-sized and packed with pillows and blankets. She could have died happy right there. Her knees actually almost gave out at the sight. A comfortable room, with a thermostat? A real mattress? It was almost too much to bear.

“Well,” said Chakotay, releasing a breath as his lips quirked into a smile. “This is a bit of an improvement from the old bus.”

“A bit?” Kathryn laughed, setting her bag down near the far bed. She fell back onto the quilt and, God, she could have fallen asleep right then and there. “This is paradise.”

She stared at her eyelids for a long moment. Then she registered that he hadn’t moved from the doorway. In fact, he was shifting from foot to foot, chewing his bottom lip.

“Everything alright?” She sat up.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” he clarified.

She understood what he meant, of course. He _was_ still almost a stranger to her. And she was a woman nearly by herself in the middle of the Colorado woods. 

But when it came down to it, she shrugged with a smile.

“I already got on a bus and rode halfway across the country with you. What’s one night in a hotel?”

He joined her smile, and finally set his bags down. 

“That’s true. Although, it does seem like we’re living in a romance novel of some kind.”

“It does.”

They laughed. And then they fell into a silence that was so awkward it was palpable. Kathryn looked askance. Chakotay tugged at his earlobe. Neither of them met each other’s eyes, nor did they make a move to _do_ something. 

Then, at the same time almost, they stood. They gestured to the bathroom. Then they laughed again.

“You can use it first,” Chakotay offered.

“Oh no, I was just going to brush my teeth.”

“So was I, actually.”

They paused, again. And again, Kathryn felt herself cringing on the inside and outside. Why were they able to talk to each other on a bus full of people, but not when it was just the two of them? What was the difference?

“Okay,” she said, snatching her toothbrush out of her bag, “let’s both brush our teeth at the same time. How’s that sound?”

Chakotay nodded.

“Sounds...sound.”

And so, they did.

……………………. ………………… ………………. ………………..

There is an intimacy involved in brushing one’s teeth next to someone else. Kathryn had never thought about it before tonight. But every time her elbow brushed his, every time they almost bumped heads, every time she caught his eye in the mirror....it was like she was seeing scenes from a different life. A domestic little setting where this whole ordeal was everyday. A place where they nudged each other almost to the point of aggravation, then laughed it off a moment later. A place that could exist in another place, another time.

She shook off these thoughts as she got ready for bed. It was ridiculous to daydream like this. She wasn’t a teenager.

“Are you okay if I leave this light on?” Chakotay asked from his bed. 

Kathryn emerged from the bathroom with a matching set of pajamas and found him in similar garb - a gray T-shirt and long plaid pj pants. Her eyes got stuck on his hair, which was sticking up more than usual, and she nearly forgot to answer him.

“Oh, yes; that’s fine.” 

She hurried to her own bed, sliding beneath the covers to get warm. The thermostat was set at a good temperature, but there was a bit of a draft flooding in from the window in the back of their room. Still, it was a much better situation than on the bus.

Kathryn laid back on her pillow and stared up at the ceiling. She could just make out the wooden beams crossing horizontally above her. They formed a dizzying pattern in her mind, especially as her brain grew more and more sleepy. But she couldn’t get over the edge. She couldn’t keep her eyes closed. 

She couldn’t fall asleep.

“Whatcha reading?” she asked, leaning on her elbow as she turned suddenly to Chakotay.

He startled, surprised that she was still up, and jerked his head toward her own. When he realized who was talking, he relaxed and eased back into his bedsheets.

“La Vita Nuova. It’s a lot different from my usual fare.”

Kathryn smiled warmly, sinking deeper into her pillow.

“'Here begins a new life',” she quoted, eyes drifting halfway shut as she gazed across the room to him. 

He turned to her almost as sharply as he had before, eyebrows raising toward his hairline.

“You’ve read it?”

She shrugged.

“I’m a sucker for Dante,” she said. “Surprised?”

“No, no.” He paused. His eyes flickered toward her own. “Just a little.”

“Well then, Mr. Chakotay,” she closed her eyes. “We’ve still got a lot to learn about each other.”

A period of silence passed between them. She didn’t think he was going to respond. And then, suddenly, he did.

“I look forward to it.”

Her eyes opened wide. His lips were set in a smile, his cheeks slightly pink in the light of his bedside lamp. She gave him the same bashful grin, and then tried to settle back into her pillow.

And that was when a knock came to the door.

It was a soft, gentle sound. Probably Harry or Tom forgot something on the bus and needed the key. Or maybe Kes searching for a medical kit. 

Chakotay opened the door. And, surprisingly, Tuvok was standing there.

“I apologize for disturbing you both,” he said with a tired voice. It was funny, how exhausted his voice sounded combined with how perfect his overall appearance was; his blue checked pajamas could have been ironed, they were so neat.

“That’s fine, Tuvok,” Kathryn tossed her blankets off of herself and stood to welcome him. “What can we do for you?”

She noticed the pillow tucked under Tuvok’s arm, and the soft frown touching his lips. 

“I was wondering…” he started, looking around the room. He released a breath, stood up straighter, and began again. “I have been unable to achieve sleep this evening, with Mr. Neelix’s extroverted nature combined with his tendency to snore, and I wondered whether you had adequate lodgings for a third person. I see now that this room is full, and I apologize-”

“Tuvok,” Kathryn cut him off, “you don’t need to keep apologizing. We’re happy to have you.”

“Are you sure?” 

His voice sounded so hopeful that even if Kathryn wasn’t already going to grant his request, she would have anyway. 

“Of course.”

“Where shall I-?”

“Ah, Mr. Tuvok!” a voice said behind the weary scientist. The Doctor, with his own pillow and tired eyes. “I wasn’t expecting to find you here.”

“Nor I you,” Tuvok said. 

“Doctor,” said Chakotay, setting his hands on his hips. “How can we help you?”

The Doctor peeked into the room with a frown. 

“My room is situated just beside Mr. Paris and Mr. Kim, and they both appear to share my jpy of music.” He sighed. “They do not, however, share my taste.”

Kathryn smiled to herself.

“Tom blasting his music again?” she asked.

“Alongside Mr. Kim’s jazz album. I honestly don’t know how either of them can stand it.” 

Chakotay asked, “Is Kes able to sleep?”

“Perfectly,” the Doctor deadpanned, obviously envious. He grimaced as he looked from Chakotay to Kathryn. “Ordinarily I would grin and bear it. But I really do need a good night’s sleep. My headache’s starting to return in full force and I fear that more symptoms may return if I don’t take proper care of myself.”

Chakotay looked to Kathryn with a sigh. She understood what he meant; she’d been nearly asleep before all of this. But she couldn’t turn either of them away, what with Tuvok’s first ever personal request and the Doctor’s pleading eyes. 

“Come on in,” she said, opening the door wide. 

Once they were all inside, decisions had to be made about accommodations. Kathryn and Chakotay met eyes, again. And there were really only a handful of options here.

“Okay everyone,” Chakotay said, “Who wants to bunk with whom?”

Tuvok shrugged. “I am comfortable sleeping beside anyone.”

“As am I,” said the Doctor.

Chakotay rolled his eyes at their diplomacy.

“Kathryn? Any preference?”

Her cheeks blushed red immediately, and she turned away from him just to hide it. Yes, she had a preference; she couldn’t deny it. But it was a ridiculous preference. A selfish one. Embarrassing.

“I’m fine wherever,” she said finally, hoping no one caught the long pause between his question and her answer.

Chakotay rolled his eyes again. 

“Okay, we’ll settle this like Maquis. Doctor, rock paper scissors. Tuvok, Kathryn, you do the same. Winners will go together.”

Kathryn turned abruptly to Tuvok, whose fist was already raised. Her ears perked up to hear the other game even as hers began.

“Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!” she and Tuvok said simultaneously.

He’d put out paper to cover her rock.

And beside them, the Doctor had beaten Chakotay with scissors.

Kathryn’s heart skipped a beat.

………………. ……………………… ……………… ……………………..

“Are you okay with this?” asked Chakotay, as he stood beside the bed with an expression of pure anxiety on his face. 

“Yes. Chakotay,” Kathryn smiled, “I promise. Just get in the bed.”

“Yes ma’am,” he said, then faltered. “I mean, er, Captain.”

“Please don’t call me Captain right now.”

“Right,” he chuckled. He paused, about to become all flustered again. But luckily this time he kept it to himself and got into the bed beside her.

He was careful not to make any contact; she could tell just by the timid way he settled himself under the covers. For a moment she thought he was about to suggest one of them sleeps on top of the sheet so that they definitely wouldn’t touch in the night, but he chose not to go that far.

There was nothing strange about this! Was there? They knew each other by now. Didn’t they?

All of a sudden, Kathryn was unsure. So she kept her eyes glued across the room, facing as directly opposite to him as she could.

She watched the Doctor nestle into his pillow with a slight frown, and made a mental note to check on him tomorrow. The Maquis all acted tough, but they were still just as human as her own group. She flickered her eyes up to find Tuvok sitting on the edge of the bed in a meditative position, facing the opposite wall. He was so good to her, letting her lead him into these strange situations. So good and kind and gentle. Kathryn was lucky to have him as a friend.

Her head lolled as she drifted toward sleep. But then something jolted her awake again - her head falling off of her pillow. She caught herself just in time to keep from tumbling off of the bed, but it was a close call.

Even Chakotay noticed.

“Alright?” he murmured.

Kathryn dared to turn toward him to respond. And again, her heart beat fast as she looked at him. His eyes were half-closed, looking up at her from beneath the fringe of his messier-than-usual bangs. He looked so at home there, lying in this strange bed. 

There was that word again - home. Domesticity. Strange events that felt almost everyday. Or like they could become everyday, if Kathryn just made a few choices. Said a few words.

“I’m fine,” she whispered, settling onto her back so she could stare up at the ceiling again. 

Her hand brushed against his as she glided it up through the sheets to sit on her chest. And just for a moment, there was a flicker of electricity between them. A millisecond, perhaps less. 

But it was enough to make Kathryn want more. More electricity. More touch. More…

More Chakotay.

The thought scared her so much she turned back onto the right side, facing the Doctor. He was asleep. She should be too, by now. She shouldn’t be thinking about the man sleeping beside her. She shouldn’t be thinking about his breath warming the space between them, grazing her neck every now and then. 

But why not? Why not think about it? Why not let herself fall? 

That question kept her up for another half hour, as the three men fell into easy sleeps. 

That question followed her right into the next morning.

…………….. ………………….. ……………… …………………………….

“I have one rule!” the hotel owner screeched in his high tenor voice. “One rule!”

“I know,” Chakotay soothed through the crack in the door. “They needed to switch rooms in the middle of the night.”

“Unacceptable! You will leave the premises at once! And that goes for the rest of your group as well!”

Kathryn set a hand on Chakotay’s arm before he could pick a fight. It wasn’t worth arguing over; they were leaving anyway. She thanked the hotel owner for the room, then shut the door with a final click.

“That guy is ridiculous!” Chakotay said, gesturing to the door. “What kind of a hotel doesn’t allow visitors?”

Tuvok, already dressed and ready to go, approached with a raised eyebrow.

“While his rules are strict, he did make them clear. I am fully responsible for breaking said rules, and I apologize.”

Kathryn shook her head with a smile.

“Tuvok, you really don’t need to keep apologizing. We were happy to have you.”

“Thank you, Captain.” He nodded to Chakotay and added, “Commander.”

“Anytime.” Chakotay patted Tuvok’s shoulder, then checked the clock on the table. “We’d better get the rest of them up and out of here, before that guy decides to literally kick us out.”

“I’d like to see him try,” Kathryn joked, then had a sudden thought. “Where’s the Doctor?”

“Still in bed,” the Doctor muttered suddenly from underneath a mound of blankets that nearly covered him from head to foot. “What ungodly hour is it?”

Tuvok tilted his head. “Nearly eight in the morning.”

“C’mon Doc,” said Chakotay, “You’re usually up before everyone.”

“Time moves differently when one has a concussion, as I’m sure you are aware, Commander.”

Chakotay and Kathryn shared a look. Their eyes shined a few times, as if speaking without the need for words. 

“Well,” Kathryn said, “I think we can get another hour or two in before the hotel manager checks on our room again.”

“Doctor,” Chakotay said, “you can stay here for a little while longer, if you want. Kathryn and I are going to go for a coffee run.”

“We are?” asked Kathryn.

Chakotay’s eyes widened.

“I-I just thought...you _do_ enjoy your morning coffee, and-”

“Oh I’m all for it,” she grinned. “Tuvok, do you want to join?”

“I will check on Mr. Neelix.” He sighed at the prospect. “I expect that he will wonder where I am.”

Kathryn set a hand on his upper arm.

“Good man.” Slipping her shoes on, she turned to Chakotay. “Ready to go?”

“When you are.”

The Doctor grunted something that sounded like ‘finally’. Kathryn and Chakotay tried to hide the smiles that belonged to misbehaving school kids.


	15. A Quick Coffee Break

Chapter Fifteen  
A Quick Coffee Break

Kathryn folded her hands together on the tabletop. Feeling the sturdy wooden surface helped to ground her. It would be so, so easy to get lost here, with this view. So easy to forget about your life. Forget the world, and all of its problems.

In the distance were endless mountains, decorated with an incalculable number of trees. The whole first was waking up with the dawning sun, mist slowly evaporating into the hills. But here in this cafe, it was only her. No one else wanted to be up this early, out on the still-cooler-than-comfortable deck.

Well, except Chakotay.

“One black coffee, just how you like it,” he said, suddenly setting the steaming cup in front of her. 

He shuffled over to the opposite seat with his own steaming mug. His coffee was lighter; creamier. He’d probably put too much sugar in it, too, the sweet-tooth.

“You already know me so well,” she said, taking hold of the mug with both hands. She breathed in deeply, savoring the smell of just-boiled coffee beans. “Thank you.”

“Of course.”

He took a sip of his coffee, tilting his head in admiration.

“Much better than diner coffee.”

“Oh?” Kathryn smiled. “High praise indeed.”

“I mean...a _lot_ better than diner coffee.”

Chakotay swallowed another swig of coffee and set his mug down. He turned his head almost to a ninety degree angle as he looked over the fence beside them, taking in the view. There were so many trees, clouds, rock formations...it was a nature lover’s paradise. 

Kathryn followed his gaze to a bubbling creek that was just barely visible between the trees and bushes below them. She had the sudden desire to run to that creek; step into it and see where it led. Discover the secrets it held. Or even just watch the gurgling water make its way over rocks and slopes.

But Kathryn withheld this urge to run. Because there was something keeping her here; making her even happier than a biologist running toward a creek filled with life. Something other than the coffee and the view.

“About last night,” Chakotay said suddenly, straightening his back. “Thank you for being willing to bunk with me. I hope I didn’t wake you at all, or steal the covers or anything.”

“Oh, no,” Kathryn waved him off. “No, it was absolutely fine. Thank _you_ for putting up with me in your bed. I just didn’t want to turn those two away.”

“No, definitely.”

They each turned their eyes away from each other, like two ridiculous teenagers speaking about every topic except the one that they really wanted to discuss. Kathryn took a sip of her coffee and noticed that Chakotay did, too. She almost laughed at how silly they were acting. She could even feel her cheeks blushing.

When she set down her coffee, she made a promise to say what she was thinking. What she’d been thinking for a while now.

“Chakotay…” she started, but then stopped. Because at the same time she said his name, he said her name.

They both paused. Looked at each other like deer caught in the headlights of an approaching vehicle. And then, as always, they gave each other smiles.

“You first,” Chakotay said.

“No, you,” Kathryn said in return.

Chakotay shifted awkwardly in his seat. He folded his hands together, tapping his foot against the floor.

“Well...over the past few days…” he cleared his throat; tugged at his ear; smiled when he accidentally caught her eye. “I’ve really enjoyed this trip.”

Kathryn nodded, trying to encourage him further.

“I have, too,” she said. “It’s been the trip of a lifetime.”

“Exactly.” Chakotay sat up, then leaned back again. “And, er, I’ve also noticed...I feel…”

“Yes?”

He looked up and caught her eyes again. This time, he held them.

“Kathryn…”

But just at that moment, the door behind them slammed open and then closed. It was the hotel owner, with an angry face barely masked by his thick-rimmed glasses. He stormed toward their table with his hands gesturing wildly.

“I believe that I _told_ you and your _friends_ to leave the premises immediately!!” he squeaked.

Kathryn and Chakotay jumped to their feet, collecting their things as quickly as possible.

“That you did,” Chakotay said quickly.

Kathryn shared a grimace with him, then threw her purse over her shoulder.

“We’ll get going now.”

“I hope you will!” the hotel owner called.

She and Chakotay practically ran back into the building, down the steps, out to the bus. Her heart pounded. She felt like a naughty schoolgirl. 

But all the while, she only had one thing on her mind: what had Chakotay been about to tell her? 

…………….. …………………. ………………….. ……………………...

“ _Country roooooads, take me hoooooome_ ,” the entire bus sang in loud, conflicting pitches. “ _to the place I belooooong._ ”

Kathryn glanced over and found Tuvok’s head bopping along to the beat. As subtle as it was, and as quietly as he was murmuring the lyrics, it made her smile stretch from ear to ear. 

God, this was fun. This whole trip. This whole team. Tom had started this particular ‘sing-along’, shouting the lyrics from the driver’s seat as he tapped the wheel in time. But everyone had joined in quite willingly. They all seemed to be settled in now. Kathryn supposed going through Hell and back out again would do that to a group of people.

“Onto Utah we go!” Tom shouted, as they passed around another winding road leading westward. 

Everyone cheered, including Kathryn.

But she couldn’t help the biting ache that hit her chest at the thought. Utah. Then Nevada. Then...then onto California. Before long, they’d be there. 

Before long, she’d never have a chance to learn what she and Chakotay were. Or what this family could be. 

She needed to buck up some courage and ask for answers she wanted to know. 

She needed to be brave and tell people what she wanted to say.


	16. In Search of a Lizard

Chapter Fifteen  
"In Search of a Lizard"

“Captain?” Harry asked, gazing at her from behind a pair of sunglasses settled just under a minor league baseball hat he’d picked up from some shop a few miles back. “Tuvok and I just finished up our report for this survey location.”

She glanced up at him, squinting even behind her own sunglasses. Her skin was probably burning in the heat, exposed as it was with only a tank top and shorts to cover herself. But Utah was proving hotter than she’d anticipated; hotter than any of them had anticipated, in fact. Half of the Maquis were hiding on the bus to escape the heat, while the rest of them stretched their legs in the shade of the surrounding rocks and boulders. 

Kathryn alone knelt out on the dusty ground.

“We can get going soon,” she said, then frowned. “I was just hoping...have you ever seen a Gila monster in person, Harry?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Sightings have been incredibly rare this year,” explained Kathryn. “I was hoping we’d be able to take a picture of one. That would certainly add some excitement to our survey.”

“It would.”

Harry’s tone was less sure than his words. The poor kid probably wanted to get back on the cool bus, crank up the AC, and get back on the road. But Kathryn had a good feeling about this place. Well, as it pertained to the lizard, at least. The land looked like it belonged in an old sci-fi movie. Maybe they’d used this place as a set for Mars or some more distant planet. 

Kathryn pushed herself to her feet, clapping the dust off of her hands.

“Oh well. Maybe at the next location.”

Harry shared her frown, but they made their way back without further delay. 

Just before she entered the bus, Kathryn spared one last look back, letting a few of the Maquis enter before her. She murmured a soft goodbye to this spot, then placed her hopes on the next survey location.

…………….. …………………. ……………….. ……………… …………………

Someone (Harry) must have realized how much Kathryn wanted to find a Gila Monster. Because at the next location, Chakotay led all of the Maquis out to the dusty field and lined them up in a semi-circle to give a talk. They probably looked ridiculous, all of them standing out here with various hats, tank tops, T-shirts, cameras; like some kind of strange tourist group. But they ignored the strangeness of their appearance and listened to Chakotay.

“I want everyone to group up and spread out in a search pattern,” he said. “Gila monsters usually hide out near rock formations; foothills. We’ve got a few pairs of leather gloves that will make it safer to handle, if need be. I want one person in each group to wear the gloves at all times.”

The Doctor bounced on his heels with a finger in the air to call everyone’s attention.

“With that in mind...remember that Gila Monsters _are_ venomous and can infect you with a mild neurotoxin. It’s nothing fatal, but I’m not in the mood to treat an animal bite today if I can help it.”

“Thanks, Doc,” B’Elanna joked, “We’re all feeling a lot better about this now.”

Kathryn frowned. She waited until the Maquis had started to group up before tugging on Chakotay’s sleeve and pulling him off to the side to speak to him privately.

“You really don’t have to do all of this,” she said hurriedly. “I don’t want anyone getting hurt because of _my_ scientific studies.”

“We’re Maquis,” he said with a smirk, “it’s our job to help in any way we can; remember?”

“Yes, but this isn’t necessary.”

Chakotay shrugged, still rather casual about this whole thing.

“Kathryn, it’s really not a big deal. I saw a Gila Monster when I was a boy. We’re not exactly chasing down a tiger here.” 

She took a breath and relaxed into a smile. Him and his jokes and his bright smiles, always getting the best of her. 

“Alright,” she relented. “But at the first sign of trouble…”

“We’ll call off the search and scurry back to the bus,” he finished. Then, with an unblinking stare, “I promise.”

Kathryn was satisfied with that answer. So as the Maquis went off in their pairs and trios to search for her lost lizard, she joined up with Tuvok to do the same.

It actually turned out to be a pleasant change of pace, to walk out here with everyone focused on one concerted effort. Finally they could all get moving and digging through the dirt for a longer period of time. They could laugh and joke out in the late-spring sun; fill their lungs with fresh air. 

And she definitely couldn’t complain about her partner. Tuvok kept his focus the entire time, eyes darting back and forth across the terrain. Once, he thought he spotted something. It turned out to be a small bird searching for its next meal, but Kathryn was proud of him nonetheless.

“Good eye,” she commented, stepping carefully up onto a hill of rocks. 

Tuvok looked up at her with a furrowed brow. It was his ‘concerned’ face; she’d know it anywhere.

“Are you sure that is safe?” 

Kathryn gestured with her arms out.

“Is anything out here really ‘safe’, Tuvok?” she smiled. “I’ll be careful; don’t worry. I’ve been climbing since I was a little girl.”

“That does not negate the perils inherent in all unsteady rock formations.”

Kathryn paused in her climb to look down at him with a soft smile. He hid it well most of the time, but he really, really cared about her. She was so lucky to have a friend like him. It almost made her feel guilt for how much trouble she’d caused him over the past few weeks. Hell, over the past few years.

But Kathryn was not to be deterred from her mission; not even by Tuvok. She turned back to the rocky hill and took another step upward, then another. Before long she was darting up the hill like a mountain goat. She felt the craggy rocks in her bones, like they were a part of herself. Her legs moved almost automatically up and to the side, over this rock, around that one. 

Finally she reached the zenith of the hill and looked up. 

Utah was gorgeous, in its own way. Though she was usually more of a forest person, she couldn’t find fault with the grayish brown fields spread out before her, encircled with rocky sculptures that must’ve taken the Earth a millennium or two to form. This road trip was showing her, more than ever, how amazing this planet was. How fragile, while at the same time strong. How beautiful, while at the same time treacherous.

She’d never have another experience like this. 

Kathryn looked down and found Chakotay climbing up the same hill from the opposite side. She called to him and shared a smile. Tom was behind him, using a large stick to help walk up the rugged terrain. He grimaced as he pushed himself higher and higher. When he and Chakotay were level with Kathryn, they paused and looked at the same miraculous view that she had been gazing at moments before.

Tom whistled. Chakotay set his hands on his hips.

“It really is amazing,” said Chakotay.

Kathryn agreed. But something caught her attention before she could speak.

Movement. In the rocks, just a few feet away.

Kathryn took a careful step forward, wincing as a few pebbles slid with her step. She suddenly realized that she was very close to the edge; almost frighteningly so. But there was definitely _something_ there. Whether it was a Gila Monster or not was anyone’s guess. 

She had to _know_. She had to _see_. 

“Kathryn,” Chakotay warned.

“I’m alright,” she stretched out a hand.

Very slowly, she took another step forward. There! More movement. 

And out it came from underneath the rocks: a Gila Monster! Its body was lined with black and orange stripes; she recognized it from endless books and Wikipedia searches. She grinned, turning to Chakotay.

But just as she did so, she noticed more movement in the corner of her eyes. The Gila Monster? Striking?

She couldn’t be sure what was happening, but her body reacted instinctively. Her feet stuttered back, slipping on the rocks as she jumped away from the lizard. Unfortunately, these rocks near the edge had terrible traction, even for her work boots. She slid on them; felt her arms flail in the sky as she gasped. Her heart landed somewhere in her throat as she felt her body falling.

Someone called her name. And then something was grabbing her; holding her tight. It whipped her around until she was falling in the opposite direction. The world was a nauseating whirl of colors. And then she landed back into someone, their arms still wrapped around her as they landed on the ground.

When her head stopped its spinning, she glanced over to see who it was.

Ah, of course.

Chakotay.

“Are you okay?” she asked, jumping off of him to check him for damage.

He grinned up at her, but winced when he tried to sit up. He made it up into a seated position, and then set a hand on his back.

He said, “The landing was a bit rough. But I think I’m alright.”

Kathryn frowned in sympathy and helped him the rest of his way to his feet. God, this whole thing was so embarrassing and ridiculous. But Chakotay waved off her anxieties before she could voice them, assuring her that he was fine.

Tom, on the other hand, was not so calm. He squeaked suddenly, in a high pitched scream that had Kathryn and Chakotay’s head whipping toward him at lightning speed.

Jumping back, Tom waved the stick in front of him chaotically. 

“Get away from me!” he shouted, just before jumping onto a higher level.

Kathryn looked down to see what he was so spooked about and found the Gila Monster walking toward him. It _did_ seem to be heading straight for poor Tom. But the lizard’s speed was so slow that it looked like a scene from an old B-movie. Short, stubby legs carried the lizard a few inches closer, and Tom swung his stick with full force. 

“Stay back!” he cried.

“Mr. Paris,” said the Doctor, approaching from the side of the hill Chakotay and Tom had climbed earlier. 

Tom didn’t hear him, still waving the stick around to deter the lizard. At one point, he swung the stick around in a circle above his head. If the Doctor hadn’t jumped down into a squat, he would’ve had another concussion.

After that near-fiasco, Tom’s face blushed a deep pink.

“Oh,” he murmured, “Hey Doc.”

The Doctor slowly rose to his feet, staring at Tom unblinkingly. 

“If you would like to pause your Jedi training for a moment,” he said without a smile, “I’d like to check on the Captain and the Commander please.”

“We’re fine, Doc,” Chakotay said, brushing some of the remaining dust off of his shirt and shorts. “Just a little shaken up.”

“I know how you feel,” said the Doctor. He looked carefully at Tom, who scratched the back of his neck with a still-blushing face.

Kathryn took a breath and stifled a smile. This entire situation was just so ludicrous. She almost fell off of a small mountain. Chakotay nearly injured his back. Tom almost got bitten by a venomous lizard. The Doctor was nearly decapitated by a wooden stick. And all...for a lizard?

Yeah, no; Kathryn could not stifle her smile. Or the laugh that followed. And her laughter turned on the others’ laughter. Soon there were four adults standing on a hillside laughing almost hysterically. A lizard sat sunbathing right in the middle of their circle, as if just to make this even more ridiculous.

But, like all good things, this moment had to come to an end. This time their fun was cut off by a shouting voice; the serious tone of B’Elanna Torres.

“Chakotay!” she shouted from the base of the hill. “Come look at this!”

They made their way carefully around the lizard and down the hillside. By the time they got to level ground again, the sound of distant motores entered their ears; too many to be from a single vehicle. B’Elanna was standing by the bus beside Seven, both of them sharing views through a pair of binoculars.

When Chakotay reached them, he took the binoculars from Seven’s hand and looked through them with a tense jaw. As he lowered them, his lips turned into an outright frown.

Kathryn glanced between him and the direction of the sound. Unsatisfied with either, she snatched the binoculars out of his hand and looked through them herself.

There, in the distance, was a group of motorcyclists. There were at least ten of them, riding in some sort of formation. 

And right at the front, riding on the back of the apparent leader’s motorcycle, was a woman who Kathryn would swore she’d seen before, though she couldn’t quite place it. It was a woman with bright red hair which blew in the wind behind her. 

“Seska,” Chakotay muttered under his breath.

Kathryn didn’t know why, but something in his voice made her heart skip a beat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter brought to you by Threshold...just kidding, but not really! also, dun dun dunnnn Seska's back!! i wonder what she's been up to all this time? and i wonder what she has in store for our poor Party Bus crew. tune in next chapter to find out :)


	17. Seska's Ultimatum

Chapter Seventeen  
"Seska's Ultimatum"

“Everyone get on the bus,” Chakotay said.

His tone left little room for argument. He was stern; his voice tight and constricted. 

Kathryn took a step toward him. She could only see his profile as he watched Seska’s approaching gang. He swallowed and clenched his jaw yet further, brows furrowing.

“Chakotay-”

“I mean it.” He turned swiftly to face them all, and was disappointed when he saw that not one of them had followed his order. “Go sit on the bus. This isn’t your fight.”

Kathryn scoffed.

“Who said there has to be a fight?”

Releasing a sigh, Chakotay turned to her fully. “Look, I know Seska. And I know how dangerous she is when she’s angry. I don’t know how she found us, but I’m not letting anything happen to you.” He held her eyes as he said this, then turned to the rest of his group, “ _Any_ of you.”

B’Elanna crossed her arms and gave Chakotay an almost smile.

“Give it up, Chakotay,” she said. 

Neelix clapped a hand on Chakotay’s back. “We’re with you.”

Chakotay looked to Harry, probably thinking he was the most likely to follow his advice: he was young, he was smart. But Harry only gave him a shrug.

“You’re stuck with us now, Commander,” said Harry. 

Chakotay sighed again, spinning in a circle to find that everyone was standing at his side. His teeth set in a grimace, he shook his head at all of them. 

“If we get out of this,” he grunted, “I’m picking the food places for the rest of our journey.”

The Doctor smirked. “Do your worst. We still aren’t going anywhere.”

Chakotay shook his head again. But his eyes were unmistakably brightened by his friends’ display. A moment later, his lips even curled into a smile.

“All that damned Maquis courage,” he murmured. “Alright. We do this together.”

“Here, here!” said Kathryn.

She and Chakotay shared a smile.

And then, to the sound of the roar of the approaching motorcycles, they turned to face their foe.

…………… ………………. ……………………. ………………………..

Chakotay stared down Seska with venom in his eyes. Kathryn had never seen him so angry. She’d have never believed he _could_ be so angry, his normal behavior was so gentle and calm. But now...his fists were balled at his sides. His teeth were clenched so tight in his jaw he’d need dental work.

And those eyes, that were normally so soft, could have started a fire with their intense gaze.

“Okay, tell me,” he said, as she approached with a smile and a swaggering walk. “How did you find us?”

“It was simple, really.” Seska looked at the bus, then tilted her chin in a know-it-all kind of nod. “I put a tracker in there before I left.”

“What?” B’Elanna demanded. “Where?”

Seska gave her a look of utter amusement.

“Under one of the seats in the back, obviously. The last place any of you idiots would have thought to look.”

Chakotay bit back his reply, turning slightly to meet Kathryn’s eye. She gave him a reassuring nod, and he licked his lips and continued.

“We’ve been a little preoccupied.”

“So I noticed.” Seska cringed as she observed the bus, with its taped up windows and rusted paint. “You drove straight into a tornado and got washed up for a couple days. I thought maybe you’d been killed.”

“Not quite,” Chakotay said.

His eyes were almost unblinking, as he watched Seska slink around his precious bus; his precious crew. But hers, in turn, were still humored. Still light and airy, as if this was a simple catching-up chat.

B’Elanna wasn’t in the mood for the theatrics.

“So tell me,” she said, “Why exactly were you tracking us?”

Seska ran her hand along the worst of the scratches in the side of the bus. 

“That is a long story.”

B’Elanna shrugged. “It looks like we’re not going anywhere anytime soon.”

Rolling her eyes, Seska started toward Chakotay again.

“Were they always this irritating, or did I get used to being away from their constant bantering.”

“Oh, this isn’t banter,” B’Elanna said. “This is an interrogation. Tell us why you were following us.”

Seska waved her off. She turned her attention, instead, to Seven. She looked the woman up and down, then raised an eyebrow.

“Who are you?”

“That is none of your concern,” Seven said coolly.

Seska frowned, but continued her slow walk toward Chakotay. “Fine. I’ll tell you my story. It’s one you know, at least in part.”

Tuvok set his hands behind his back, a rare impatient frown touching his lips.

“We are all ears,” he stated.

Seska leaned against the bus, arms crossed, and began her story.

“There once was a company called Kuscon Informatics. It was a small business, with only a few workers, and they were struggling to survive. But then their leader had an ingenious idea: Project Phoenix. Burn the place down to build it back up. Namely, start a fire and collect the insurance money to start a new branch somewhere more profitable.”

Kathryn shared a disgruntled look with a few members of the crew. Was she serious? Apparently she was, because she continued with only a slightly pregnant pause.

“Everything went flawlessly. The fire was lit when no one was in the building. Fire Trucks arrived just after everything was destroyed. It all seemed...perfect.”

“Doesn’t sound perfect to me,” Kathryn said dryly.

Seska either didn’t hear her, caught up as she was in memory lane, or chose to ignore her comment. 

“Unfortunately,” Seska sighed, “there was one variable unaccounted for: the cowardice of the workers. At the last second, one of the workers, a man called Jonas, had second thoughts. He ran off before he had finished properly setting up the controlled fire, off to God-knows-where. The fire didn’t go where it was supposed to, and ended up hitting the next building, and the next.” She shook her head, more in irritation than grief. “In a short while, the entire town was up in smoke. And that is where you come in. The Maquis.”

She looked Chakotay straight in the eye. Her lips curled into the epitome of malice and hatred. Even though she was ten feet away, Kathryn stumbled back a step. Seska was not a woman to be trifled with; especially not right now.

Chakotay, though, turned to face her more fully. He squared his shoulders and puffed out his chest, as if to wear the pride of the Maquis as a badge of honor on his breast; as if to challenge her to say something negative about his crew.

“I remember that incident,” he said bitterly. “We were there all day rescuing people, calling for emergency care, preventing buildings from falling.”

Seska scoffed. “The ever-honorable Maquis!”

“I remember, too,” said the Doctor. He took a step forward to stand beside Chakotay. “People were seriously injured in the fallout of that so-called ‘accident’.”

“Oh, spare me the sob stories, Doc,” Seska groaned. 

“I will not,” he said, voice raising to a higher pitch. “Perhaps you don’t know what it’s like to handle twelve different medical emergencies all at once, while your best friends are running into burning buildings to rescue _more_ injured people, but-”

“And you don’t know what it’s like to lose everything!” Seska shouted. She bared her teeth, daring someone else to speak. “It was the Maquis that discovered what had happened; one of your little minions digging their nose around where they didn’t belong. Within days, all of my best friends were put in prison. I ended up on the streets with no family, no job, no way of getting a new one. I ran away, changed my hair, started wearing contacts...all to try and start a new life that never got off the ground.

“That’s what you told me when you asked to join the Maquis,” Chakotay softly murmured. “You said your home had burned down. You didn’t tell me _you_ lit the match.”

Seska balled her fist. For a moment, Kathryn thought she might punch a dent into the bus. But she pushed off of it instead, and plastered an eerie smile onto her face.

“You Maquis think you’re so noble. But you have no idea the trail of suffering you leave behind.”

B’Elanna laughed aloud.

“You blamed the Maquis? Not, I don’t know, _yourself_ maybe?”

Seska turned her fiery eyes on B’Elanna, but held her temper back. She bit her tongue until she turned back to Chakotay with that strange smile on her face.

“I had a plan to bring you and the Maquis to your knees,” she purred. “When this group showed up and diverted your travels, I knew I had to figure out something else.”

“Wait,” Kes said, speaking up for the first time during this encounter. “You seemed adamant to get to St. Louis on that first day. Was it something there?”

Seska tilted her head. 

“Sweet Kes. You’re always thinking, aren’t you? You’d make a good member of my own crew, you know. None of these ridiculous rule-abiders to get in the way of your true potential.”

“Leave her alone,” said Neelix, standing in front of Kes.

Seska rolled her eyes. But before she could speak, Chakotay started walking toward her - slowly, carefully.

“Who is this ‘crew’, by the way?” he murmured, gesturing to the group of motorcyclists still watching this back-and-forth as if it were a live reality TV show.

“They’re a group of misfits, like the Maquis. But their goals are a little less, shall we say, high-and-mighty as your own.” Seska grinned without teeth, her eyes staring into Chakotay’s without blinking. “I’ve hired them to help me with the next stage of my plan.”

“Which is?” Kathryn asked, moving to stand at Chakotay’s side.

Seska paused, taking a slow stroll alongside the bus. She was being dramatic and she knew it; making them wait just for waiting’s sake. Just to hold the information above them, dangling it out of reach so that they were all watching her; all waiting on her. 

“There are two choiced,” she said, taking long, slow steps as she paced across the dusty ground. “Either you give me your bus, with all of its supplies, or…”

Chakotay set his hands on his hips, running low on patience. “Or?”

“Or…” Seska stopped, and stared right at him. “You come with me to the city and tell the world that it was the Maquis who started the fire.”

“What?” Chakotay chortled. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, believe me, I am.” Her lips dipped into a stern frown as she eyed the group standing at Chakotay’s side. “Tell me, Chakotay; how long will your group last out here in the middle of the desert with no food, no water, no transportation?”

Tom scoffed. “We’ll manage just fine, thanks.”

Seska widened her eyes in a mocking form of surprise. “Chakotay, I underestimated your recruiting skills. This group’s been with you for three weeks and they’re ready to die for you.”

Chakotay raised a hand. 

“No one is dying.”

Kathryn heard something in his voice; a tightness that couldn’t be explained by anything but nerves. She wanted to believe that he meant ‘no one is dying because we’ll make it through anything’. But his body language...his tone...his expression...he wasn’t really thinking…?

Seska took a step closer to Chakotay. 

“Is that an agreement I hear?” she cooed. “You only really have one choice, after all. If your group loses their supplies, they’ll suffer because of you. If you come with me, the Maquis will be disbanded but everyone will be okay.”

Harry pushed to the front of their group. “And what if we choose a third option?”

Seska levelled her gaze at him, looking thoroughly unimpressed. 

“Is that some kind of a threat, botany-boy?” she laughed to herself. “Are you forgetting the ten men standing behind me, all of whom are paid to follow my every command?”

“Harry,” Chakotay said softly, “Stay out of this.”

B’Elanna widened her eyes. She touched Chakotay’s shoulder and spun him toward herself.

“Chakotay,” she said, “you can’t-”

“Listen.” Chakotay turned to all of them with a sad look on his face. “I will not let any of you be hurt because of a choice _I_ make. I let Seska join the Maquis. This is my responsibility.”

Kathryn took in a quick breath. So her worst fears had been affirmed; Chakotay was really going to take the fall for something he didn’t do, all because Seska couldn’t handle her own mistakes like the adult that she was. 

No, that wasn’t right; that wasn’t fair to Chakotay. This wasn’t him taking the fall for Seska. This was him taking the fall for his team. This was him drawing a line and saying ‘No. You will not harm my friends’. And that was so noble it ached. So good. So kind. So…

So Chakotay.

Kathryn was so lost in her own thoughts that she barely registered Chakotay leaning closer to her. He took gentle hold of her arm and looked into her eyes. 

“I’ll be alright,” he promised. “There’s still plenty of time to fix this. But not here. Not now.”

“But Chakotay-”

“Seska’s won this round.” His lips quirked into a sort of smile. “But the fight’s not over yet.”

He nodded to her, and then started his goodbyes to the rest of his friends. Kathryn had to admit she felt awful about the whole thing. If she hadn’t wasted time looking for her damned lizard...or if she hadn’t derailed his trip...if, if, if…

But there was a small part of her that remained, against all sense, hopeful. Chakotay wasn’t giving up yet, and neither would they. It would take a lot of thinking and a lot of effort, but they would figure this out. 

Together, they would rescue Chakotay. 

Together, they would find a way to bring Seska to justice.

And, together, they would be okay again.


	18. With a Little Help From My Friends

Chapter Eighteen  
"With a Little Help From My Friends"

The next leg of the bus ride was an eerie one. Nobody spoke, let alone singing the traveling songs they’d all been belting out for much of this journey. Hardly anyone even ate. The seat that was usually Chakotay’s stared at them like a missing tooth. Every time Kathryn’s eyes passed over it, she did a double take and then remembered that he wasn’t there.

The thought hit her right in the chest every time. And, somehow, it ached just as much the tenth time as the first. How fast she had grown attached to him. How quickly he had become a natural part of her life.

The one consoling thought that she had was that they _did_ , in fact, have a plan. Well, they had the start of a plan. And better yet, they had an ally. 

The Maquis, in all of their round-the-country travelling, had friends in many places. One of those places happened to be Salt Lake City, the place Seska was most likely heading (‘most likely’ meaning ‘hopefully’). B’Elanna and the Doctor had helped some people there a couple years before and were owed more than a few favors.

“Reg is in position,” the Doctor announced, raising his phone almost to the ceiling of the bus so he wouldn’t lose his connection again. “On Route 6.”

Harry sighed, staring blankly into the space in the window across from him. “Hopefully Seska actually uses Route 6. Or else this whole thing will be a waste of time.”

“Mr. Kim,” said Tuvok, leaning into the aisle to make direct eye contact with Harry, “Pessimism will not benefit this already precarious situation.”

Harry sighed again. The poor kid’s shoulders slumped so deeply that if this weren’t such a terrifying day it would almost have been comical. 

But there was no time for coddling or comforting or any of the million other things that many of them wanted to do for each other. They had to act, and they had to act quickly.

The Doctor lowered his phone to read the next incoming text.

“He’s done it; all four lanes are blocked.”

“All four?” Kathryn’s eyes widened.

The Doctor shrugged. “He has a very large van.”

“What kind of work does Reg do?”

B’Elanna looked up from her tablet to answer her from a couple seats away. “He’s part of some nerd group or other.”

“B’Elanna!” the Doctor gasped, “You can’t call Reg a nerd.”

She levelled her gaze with him, jaw dropping slightly. 

“When we met him, he was transporting satellite dishes to a bunker so he and his friends could listen in on NASA communications.”

“That’s not nerdy at all!” the Doctor argued. “That’s actually very interesting.”

B’Elanna barely hid the smile that touched her lips. But if she were thinking of responding with another quip, she swallowed it. 

The next one to speak was Harry. He was a picture of anxiety, his knee bouncing up and down as he rubbed his hands together.

To B’Elanna, his slightly wavering voice said, “You seem awfully calm about everything. Aren’t you worried about Chakotay?”

B’Elanna’s expression turned so quickly it was almost shocking. Her lips set into a tight frown as her eyes flashed.

“Of course I’m worried about him,” she said. Her voice was hardly above a whisper but it contained strength and power. She shook her head and forced herself to a deeper state of calm. “But I also know what he’s capable of. He’ll be alright.”

Harry turned away, his cheeks blushing slightly. His knee still jerked up and down, but he remained silent. Kathryn wanted to console him, but she didn’t know how.

Because deep down, she felt the same way he did.

Deep down, she was terrified.

…………………. …………………… …………………. ………………………………..

Kathryn held the back of Tom’s seat so tightly she nearly ripped the fabric as the bus lurched, slowing. In the distance, figures dotted the horizon. Hopefully it was Seska and her gang, held up by Reg and his van. If it weren’t them, then they would have problems. And if it were them but Reg was nowhere in sight...well, Kathryn wouldn’t think about that possibility. 

“Captain?” Tuvok said, setting a hand on her shoulder. “We are ready.”

She turned halfway and gave him a curt nod. Her jaw clenched, she swallowed her fears and forced herself into a state of calm. Control. She was the leader now; she had to act like it. 

“Doctor, Kes, grab any spare medical supplies. Neelix, Harry, do the same with the food reserves.” 

A few ‘Aye, Captains’ later and her commands were being followed. It gave her a rush of pride that she didn’t dare let on. It also gave her another wave of nauseating anxiety. There was no going back now. 

Looking back at the road, one thing was clear: Reg had done his job and done it well. The entire road was blocked by broken satellite dishes, fragments of various technical supplies, wide-cast nets that prevented even motorcycles from simply riding around the wreckage on the shoulders of the road.

It was impressive. So impressive that Kathryn almost felt bad about it. But then B’Elanna whistled in admiration and nudged the Doctor, who was returning with the medical supplies.

“Looks like your friend’s really done it,” she said.

“I suppose you don’t want me telling him that you called him a ‘nerd’ earlier? Now that he’s a hero?” the Doctor replied with a smug smile.

B’Elanna gave him an expression that, if the Doctor didn’t still have a sympathy-rendering bandage on his forehead, would have been followed by a punch. She settled for rolling her eyes and releasing a sigh.

At this point, they were close enough to see the people waiting behind the broken down van and its various components: Seska and her motorcycle gang. A few of them were trying to get through the wreckage, driving straight over broken metal fragments. But a man, presumably Reg, kept dashing in front of them to prevent them passage. He waved his hands in front of himself, urging them to wait until cleanup crews had arrived.

Kathryn shifted her gaze and found one motorcycle that was merely sitting there, its driver staring down Reg like they wanted to run straight through him. 

Seska. And on the back of the bike, glancing around himself, Chakotay.

Kathryn’s heart skipped a beat. She’d hoped for this outcome, of course. But now that they were this close to rescuing him, it made the situation all the more precarious somehow. If they failed now, Seska would be in Salt Lake City in no time. They had to do this. And they had to do it now.

“Tom,” she said, straightening up, “Pull up to them and stop the van.”

………………………. ……………………… ……………………. …………………….

Kathryn’s heart was beating so quickly that if the Doctor knew, he’d probably make her return to the bus. But she simply could not do that. She was going to walk down this asphalt until she reached her goal, and she wasn’t coming back until Chakotay was by her side. 

This was her trip; her mission. And she wasn’t letting anyone else get hurt because of it.

“Excuse me,” she called to the nearest man on a motorcycle. “Can we be of any help?”

The man’s eyes widened for a moment, recognizing her instantly. He looked to Seska for assistance, and then seemed to remember that he was a tough guy in a motorcycle gang who didn’t care about rules or leaders. He revved something on his motorcycle to make himself appear more menacing and shifted up a few feet.

“It’s too late for talk,” he grumbled from behind a thick goatee. “We work for Seska, and you made your choice.”

“What’s she offering you?” Kathryn asked, setting her hands on her side. 

He looked her up and down, then turned and spat out the other side of his motorcycle. 

“More than you can offer, I expect.”

“Oh? Sure about that?” Kathryn had no idea where all of this charisma was coming from, but she wasn’t about to doubt it. “We’ve got medical supplies, food; not to mention nine different wallets.”

Chakotay spun around at that, making eye contact with her. 

“Kathryn,” he said, in a warning tone.

She gave him an encouraging nod. 

“I’m okay, Chakotay.” She turned back to the motorcyclist, hardly daring to blink. “Can we at least make you an offer?”

Seska jumped off of her bike, nearly upending Chakotay in the process. She was standing in front of Kathryn within milliseconds, a growling sneer on her face.

“They work for me,” she stated. “You and your little friends better get out of our way. Before things get ugly.”

Kathryn looked around at the group surrounding her and Chakotay. All of them were heavily muscled, about half a foot taller than her (at least), and had motorcycles that were twice as wide as she was. They could destroy her and leave hardly any evidence. 

But Kathryn wasn’t defenseless. And neither were her friends, who were now exiting the bus with angered, threatening expressions on their faces that easily rivalled those of Seska’s cohorts. Even the Doctor and Kes, the healers of their little group, gripped their cases of medical supplies as if they were weapons. 

She turned back to Seska and the goateed man with her hands raised and a smirk on her face.

“Look,” she said, “We can turn this into an all out brawl, but I’ve never been one for fighting. Or we can discuss this together and work out a compromise.”

Seska took a lunging step forward, but was held back by her own aide, the man with the goatee.

“I want to see what she has to say,” he said, towering over Seska as he rose off of his motorcycle. “Or are you afraid that you can’t offer better?”

Seska gave him a glare that could kill, but she stopped approaching.

Kathryn nodded in gratitude and gestured for the Doctor, Kes, Neelix, and Harry to approach with their treasures.

“We have three cases of medical supplies, two cases of food...it’s all yours if you hand over Chakotay.”

The man opened the boxes one by one, rifling through the supplies with rigid movements. When he slammed the last food case closed, he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

“What’s stopping us from stealing the supplies and the bus and leaving you all here with Mr. NASA over here?” he said, gesturing to Reg, who was pretending to fumble around picking up the supplies from his van.

Kathryn met Reg’s eyes and gave him a pointed look at the van. He seemed baffled for a moment, then hurried toward her, dropping the supplies he was carrying.

“You...you should know,” he said, catching his breath slowly, “The van is equipped with GPS technology and a phoneline. Right now my...group is watching us. Very closely, I might add. And if they detect any foul play…”

“I get the picture,” the motorcyclist said with a sneer that scared Reg back to his van. He turned back to Kathryn, then to Seska. “Well?”

She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. “Well what?”

The motorcyclist shifted his stance, levelling his gaze with Seska.

“I need to keep my boys fed. What you gave us is nothing compared to what they’re offering.”

Seska grit her teeth.

“I paid you,” she said bluntly. “And you _will_ get me and Chakotay to Salt Lake City.”

The man shook his head and gestured to his fellows. 

“Pack these supplies in your packs,” he commanded. “We’re getting out of here.”

“You can’t!” Seska screamed. She approached him with balled fists and wide eyes.

But all the man had to do was sit back on his motorcycle and rev the engine and she was jumping back away. Kathryn almost felt bad for her at that moment. She looked like a woman who had lost everything right on the brink of having everything. She had to remind herself that Seska had done this to herself; that they were seeking justice, not revenge. That people had been hurt because of Seska and her friends.

One look at Chakotay and Kathryn’s mind was cleared. He had almost been added to Seska’s list of victims. She could hardly believe how close they had come to losing him to her lies and her conceitedness. 

“Chakotay,” she said quietly, her voice losing its power as the adrenaline flooded out of her system. “Come here.”

His stunned face turned from Seska to herself before he pushed himself off of the motorcycle. He ambled over to her lost in disbelief.

As he walked toward his crew, however, Seska spun around to intersect him.

“NO!” she screamed, louder than ever before. “You are not getting away from me. You _will_ come with me and tell them-”

“Seska,” Chakotay said, raising a hand, “it’s over.”

She shook her head, then started toward Reg’s van. It looked liked she was finished; had accepted her fate. But then she snatched up a broken piece of metal from the ground. 

“Kathryn!” Chakotay shouted.

Before Kathryn could get her brain to do something about what was happening, Chakotay was stepping between herself and Seska. Metal glistened. Chakotay shouted in pain, latching a hand onto his upper left arm.

The metal bounced off of the ground a few feet from Kathryn, settling onto a nondescript part of the road out of harm’s way.

While Reg and a suddenly-approaching officer prevented Seska from doing further harm, Kathryn hurried to Chakotay. 

He was doubled over slightly, still cradling his upper arm with a look of shock and pain written into his features.

“Chakotay,” she murmured, setting her hand on his uninjured shoulder.

“I think I’m okay,” he said quickly. That damned Maquis courage again; he couldn’t help but put on a brave face. 

The Doctor stood at his injured side, tearing the fabric off of his arm without delay. 

“Kes, we need gauze, antibiotics, bandages, the usual.”

“On it.”

“Commander,” the Doctor said, “it doesn’t look too bad, but let’s sit you down in case you start to feel faint.”

Chakotay didn’t reply, but settled down on the asphalt. The Doctor and Kathryn knelt at his side, their hands bracing his shoulders as they shook slightly with the shock of everything that had happened to him today.

Kes returned in a flurry of motion, practically dropping the medkit onto the ground. In a blur of colors, she had opened the kit and handed off the proper items to the Doctor. 

“This might hurt a bit,” the Doctor warned, then pressed the gauze against his upper arm.

Kathryn grabbed Chakotay’s hand reflexively as he grunted in pain. He squeezed her palm and gave her a grateful nod even as he gritted his teeth. 

“What a day, huh?” he joked.

Kathryn stroked his forehead, one of the only times she’d ever made direct contact with his skin. It was warm, but not worryingly so. In different circumstances, she might have blushed at the closeness - she could feel his breath on her cheek and he could probably feel the same. But at this moment, she didn’t feel uncomfortable at all. This felt...right, somehow. Like this wasn’t a near-stranger she was knelt beside, but rather someone she’d known all her life.

Surely they hadn’t met only a few weeks ago?

“The bleeding’s already slowing,” said the Doctor. He gave Chakotay a soft smile.

“Thanks, Doc,” he murmured, closing his eyes. 

“I’m just doing my job.”

“That’s what you always say,” Chakotay smiled, then opened his eyes onto Kathryn’s face. “And thank you, too. You pretty much saved my life today.”

Kathryn held his eyes. Had they always been so mesmerizing? The sunlight shining in them looked like the stars shining in the night sky. Her heart skipped a beat (it was doing that rather a lot on this trip, now that she thought about it). 

“Always,” she said, then cleared her throat. “You saved my life, too, so I guess we’re even now.”

“That was just an instinct,” he waved off.

“Oh?” She gave him a pointed look, then a gentle smile. “That Maquis courage again?”

He shook his head with the same smile. “Can’t get away from it.”

As the Doctor and Kes bandaged his arm, a shadow fell upon their little group. Kathryn looked up and found a police officer standing with his hands on his hips.

“My name is Officer Owens,” he said, “Do you require an ambulance, sir?”

“No,” Chakotay said instantly. “I’m okay, really.”

The officer sighed, then glanced back toward the van. Behind the mess Reg had created with the broken satellites and such sat a police car.

“I’m gonna need you to answer some questions.”

“Of course,” Chakotay said. “But do you think I can ride in my bus? I’d rather be with my friends right now.”

Kathryn’s chest warmed at his statement. First of all because he sounded so vulnerable. And secondly because he considered her and her crew as part of his group of friends. Of course they all felt the same way about Chakotay and the rest of the Maquis, but it was always nice to get a confirmation. 

“That sounds acceptable,” Officer Owens said with another sigh, as if he just wanted this business over, no matter how that came about. He handed Chakotay a small card. “Just meet us at this address so you can give your statement and information. And _don’t_ ditch on us, or I won’t be able to do anything to help you folks.”

“No problem,” Chakotay said, gesturing with the card. 

Officer Owens started back toward his car, where his partner was waiting for him. He patted Reg on the back as he went, suggesting a relationship of sorts between the two seemingly unconnected men. Kathryn turned to the Doctor, who was finishing taping the bandage on Chakotay’s arm.

“How did you make that happen, again?”

The Doctor gave her a quick smile. 

“I’m friends with Reg, and Reg is friends with Officer Owens. Luckily all of this was happening near Salt Lake City or my connections would’ve been useless.”

“Well, in that case, we would’ve used one of mine or Chakotay’s connections,” B’Elanna said, suddenly appearing and kneeling in front of Chakotay. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine,” he assured her. 

“So, how long do you think we’ll have before the trial?”

“I’m not trying to be there,” Chakotay said.

“What?” B’Elanna scoffed. “You _are_ pressing charges, aren’t you?”

“Not for this, now,” Chakotay gestured his arm.

“Chakotay, you can’t be serious. She could’ve killed you if the metal had hit the right spot.”

He cringed, tilting his head.

“Thank you for that imagery,” he said, “But I really don’t want to drag this out even longer. I’ll tell the police that she was a part of the group that started the fire a couple years ago, and that she was working with a paid-off motorcycle group to clear her name. But beyond that…”

B’Elanna gave him a look that he easily equalled with his own. 

“Look,” he sighed, “I really don’t want to discuss this anymore. Right now I just want to sleep for the next few days and get back out on the road. We’ve still got miles to survey.” He looked to the Doctor and Kes. “Are we all done here?”

“Yes,” Kes answered, closing up the medkit. “We’ll change your bandages every couple hours. More, if necessary, but I think you’ll be alright.”

“Thank you both,” he said, giving them each a warm smile. “Now, let’s go home.”

“Home?” B’Elanna questioned.

Chakotay, holding Kathryn’s hand, got to his feet. The Doctor steadied him with a hand on his back, and they all turned back to the bus.

“Home,” Chakotay clarified, looking at the old rusty paint and the cracked windows of his bus.

Kathryn squeezed his hand with a smile.


	19. A Perfect Night

Chapter Nineteen  
"A Perfect Night"

It felt like they’d been sitting in this parking lot for days, but it was only six hours. 

Six hours! Kathryn’s head lifted from her watch, eyebrows raised nearly to her hairline. What on Earth could those people be questioning the Maquis about for _six hours_?!

They were somewhere in Salt Lake City, miles off of their original course. But that was perfectly alright. In fact, Kathryn hardly thought about their original plans anymore. That fateful day, when she and her crew had packed up their bags and headed west, felt like a lifetime ago. Almost as far away as this morning’s coffee run felt.

She stood to stretch, feeling every muscle in her achy body. And as she did, she looked around at the people sitting around her. 

Her crew. 

Tuvok, as always, looked perfectly content. In fact, he looked quite pleased to be sitting in this air-conditioned bus. He had found a book he hadn’t finished stacked somewhere in his luggage and was reading it with a small smile on his face, a bottle of water clenched in his fist to keep himself hydrated. 

Good old Tuvok; always prepared. Always on top of things.

Then there were Tom and Harry. They had, apparently, run out of snacks to eat (they’d have to make yet another snack run before heading out) and were now locked in a tense game of cards. It didn’t resemble any game Kathryn had played, nor even heard of. Honestly she wouldn’t have been surprised if they’d just invented something during these past few weeks. They were the type to do that: equally smart and fun-loving.

Seven was sat in the back of the bus cataloguing the medical reserves and emergency rations. The poor woman never seemed to be able to relax. Kathryn supposed that she’d lived a difficult life up til now (who was she kidding? These past few weeks hadn’t exactly been a vacation, either). Focusing on efficiency and productivity probably kept Seven’s thoughts at bay. Kept her clear-headed. 

There was something admirable in that. But Kathryn made a point to herself to check up on the young woman every now and then. Even tough people needed help sometimes.

Sometimes it was tough people who _especially_ needed help.

Kathryn sat back down and turned to the window. Her reflection stared back at her; tired, but excited eyes and a carefully concealed frown. She’d never admit it, but she was a little anxious about the Maquis. Why _was_ it taking so long? Just administrative paperwork? Or had there been problems? It seemed that Seska was determined to make Chakotay pay for her crimes. Had she succeeded in some way?

But no. Finally, a group of people were walking toward their vehicle. Sunlight bled through the windows of the parking lot walls, revealing B’Elanna, the Doctor, Kes, Neelix, and Chakotay.

They all looked tense. It wasn’t surprising, given that they’d just been interrogated all day. But it made Kathryn’s stomach tighten into a knot. Had something gone wrong? Were they going to be detained longer? Why did they all look so serious; so sad?

Tom ran over to unlock the doors. As soon as they slid open, the Doctor, Kes, and Neelix slipped inside and went to their usual seats. Their faces were unreadable, covered with a layer of exhaustion.

B’Elanna entered next, slowly craning her neck to stretch it. “At least that’s over,” she murmured.

Tom met Kathryn’s eyes, then turned back to B’Elanna. “So...it’s all taken care of?”

Chakotay released a sigh that settled into a smile.

“It’s done.”

Kathryn bit back the instinct to cheer. None of the Maquis seemed to be in the mood for celebration just now. The Doctor already had his head rested against the window, halfway to dreamland. Kes and Neelix seemed to be realizing there were no snacks remaining.

Tom and Harry shared a frown. Then, as always, Tom plastered on a warm smile.

“I know what we all need,” he said. “Lunch.”

Neelix gasped in unconcealable joy. “Thomas Eugene Paris, you just stole the words right out of my mouth.”

Tom furrowed his brows as he laughed to himself. “No one’s called me that since...no, not ever, actually.”

“Eugene?” Kes said, her eyes lighting up. “That’s a lovely name!”

Tom smirked, settling back into the driver’s seat. 

“See what you’ve done, Neelix,” he joked. “Now I’ll never live it down.”

“I’m serious!” Kes laughed. “I had an uncle named Eugene.”

The Doctor raised his head only to say, “I thought your uncle’s name was Elrem?”

“That was a different uncle.”

“Okay!” Tom called with a goofy chuckle. “Let’s get this show on the road, shall we?”

B’Elanna sank into her seat. “Please,” she begged.

Tom kickstarted the bus’ engine and they were off, at last.

Kathryn tried to glance Chakotay, sitting all the way in the front of the bus, but he was hidden from view. He’d been very quiet since they’d all returned. She wasn’t sure if that was something to worry about or something to expect. 

Maybe, like many things, it was a little bit of both.

………………….. ……………………….. ……………………. ………………………….

Tom and Neelix stepped up onto the bus carrying bags and bags of food. It all smelled absolutely wonderful, and absolutely horrible for the arteries, which made Kathryn’s stomach rumble and her mouth water. 

“Okay,” Tom said, lifting sandwiches out of the bags one by one. “We’ve got veggie burgers for Tuvok, Chakotay, Kes, and the Doc.” He passed the burgers along until they made their way to the right people. “Cheeseburgers for Harry, myself, and the Captain. Aaaaand a regular burger for B’Elanna, Neelix, and Seven.”

They passed around water bottles, they turned up the radio, and, finally, they had a pleasant meal together once again. It really felt like being a part of a large family. Kathryn found herself laughing heartily on more than one occasion, having to temper herself so she didn’t snort water from her nose. Between Seven and Tuvok’s deadpanned sarcasm, the Doctor’s puns, and Kes’ corny, perfectly memorized jokes, their little group in the back had a lot of fun as they ate.

But even so, Kathryn found herself glancing over to the other group in the front. Harry and Tom were waking up the two exhausted members of the Maquis, B’Elanna and Chakotay, who slowly developed smiles and jokes of their own. There were times when Kathryn wanted to walk over to join them. Well, more specifically, she wanted to talk to Chakotay. He’d been so quiet on the ride over here. Now that he was finally talking again, she wanted to know what he was saying.

It was funny, how someone could go from a stranger to being someone you wanted to hear every word out of, all in such a short period of time. Funny and terrifying; a combination that Kathryn had gotten used to during this chaotic journey of theirs.

Lunch was over nearly as soon as it began, and suddenly everyone’s thoughts turned to the next leg of the journey. Tom and Harry, apparently, had an idea for that, too. In fact, as they glanced at each other toward the end of lunch, they gave the impression that they had thought about this seemingly spontaneous adventure hours ago.

“What does everyone think,” Harry said, clapping his hands together, “about going to the beach of the Salt Lake?”

Well, with a suggestion like that, they were never going to lose a majority vote (although Seven did put up a strong argument about their ‘mission’, ‘efficiency’, and the ‘cost effectiveness’ of such a diversion). And within minutes, lunch was cleaned up, Tom was in the driver’s seat, and the crew was taking turns changing into beach-appropriate clothing.

Kathryn stared out the window as they made the drive up to the lake, letting her imagination wander for a little while. She had so many things she wanted to say to a certain someone. And though they were still miles away from San Francisco, the time they had left together was growing shorter and shorter every minute. If she wanted to tell him...if she wanted him to know...well, a beach was an excellent place to get one’s mind straightened out. And, though it made her blush to even think about, it was a rather romantic location as well.

If she were ever going to figure out her relationship with Chakotay, tonight would be the best time to do it. Whether her frantically beating heart liked that idea or not.

……………… …………………….. …………………… …………………………...

The beach was made of white sand, the kind Kathryn had only ever seen in travel brochures and desktop background images. And though it was a lake and not the ocean, the sky looked so big over the horizon. This place felt enormous. Divine. 

And yet, somehow, Tom had found them a spot where they could be nearly alone (as alone as a group of ten could be, at least). The bus parked on the last bit of road they could find, the crew packed their beach gear and headed out into the sun and the sand. 

The temperature was high. Perhaps not as high as Kathryn had ever felt, but it was definitely up there. Immediately, Tuvok and Seven faltered in their steps. They’d both dressed for the occasion, at least in part; Tuvok in green-gray board shorts and a T-shirt, Seven in capris, a tank top, and a light sweater. But now that they were out here, they seemed to be questioning every decision that had landed them here.

“I believe,” Seven said, “I will remain under the umbrella for the time being.”

“I will join you,” Tuvok replied. He took the umbrella from Neelix’s hand and began setting it up at such an angle that the sun was perfectly and completely blocked. 

“Come on, Mr. Tuvok!” Neelix begged. “You know, the water here has some interesting scientific properties,” he said, trying to be enticing.

Tuvok was not moved. He tilted his head, flipped open a fold-up chair, and sat down to read his already-bookmarked novel. 

“I do not wish to risk dermal dysplasia for a brief moment of pleasure.”

Seven gave him an appreciative nod. “A wise decision.”

“Thank you, Seven.”

Neelix made to argue further, but turned off with a disgruntled noise. Kes laughed at his humorous frustration, then wrapped a hand around his arm.

“Come on, Neelix,” she cooed. “I want to walk along this whole beach before sunset, so we’d better get started.”

Kathryn smiled to herself as they walked off arm in arm. The sand felt nice beneath her sandals, and she expected that it would be that way all over the beach. This place was like an Eden. She didn’t know how Tom had found it, but he really had.

Speaking of Tom…

“Hey Doc!” the young man shouted, jogging awkwardly through the sand until he reached the Doctor, who was putting on sunscreen in the shade of Tuvok and Seven’s umbrella. 

“Yes, Mr. Paris?”

“Isn’t there some kind of rule about swimming right after you eat?”

“Ah, I was wondering if someone would mention that. You know, it’s a funny story-”

“It is a myth,” Seven stated plainly, her voice cutting through the Doctor’s oncoming explanation like a knife. She turned sharply to Tom. “There is no danger to swimming just after eating. In fact, the calories we have just consumed make it more likely that you will have the energy to survive a possible drowning situation.”

Tom cringed. “Oh,” he said, unsure what else to say. “That’s...nice to know, I guess.”

“However,” Seven stood and looked pointedly at the Doctor. “After a concussion, one should not engage in excessive physical activity until cleared by a doctor. Since you are the only physician here and you cannot clear yourself, you should not go swimming this evening.”

“But Seven!” the Doctor whined. “I feel fine!”

Seven raised an eyebrow. “That does not lower the chance that you will become fatigued more quickly than usual, nor that your concussion symptoms could return at random.”

The Doctor rolled his eyes, but he knew he was beat. Handing the sunscreen off to Tom, he unfolded the third and final chair they had and sat with a pouting expression. 

“You’re right, of course,” he said. 

Seven sat in her own seat, a small smile touching her face. Kathryn couldn’t help but smile along with her as she began putting on her sunscreen. It would be a huge relief to know the Doctor was going to be safe tonight. One less person to worry about. But, of course, that begged a question, that the Doctor voice aloud.

“Seven,” he said softly. “Why _are_ you so concerned about my safety?”

Seven was quiet for a moment. She looked out at the lake, deep in thought. Then she turned back to the Doctor with her usual matter-of-fact expression and tone of voice.

“You are the most vulnerable of our group. When I was with my prior collective, the most vulnerable were usually left behind.” She looked down at her twiddling thumbs. “I...do not wish to see that happen to anyone else.”

The Doctor, Tuvok, Tom, and Kathryn were all silent for a long moment after her admission. Tuvok pretended to go back to his book, but was clearly still deep in meditation about her words. Tom rubbed sunscreen into the same spot on his neck until his skin was nearly raw. But Kathryn couldn’t help but say _something_. 

“Seven,” she murmured, “We’re not going to leave _anyone_ behind. That’s not how we do things.”

“It is not?”

“No, of course not. We help each other.”

Seven sighed, tilting her head.

“As I stated...my prior collective had a harsh policy when it came to injuries and illnesses. I could not always protect people who I otherwise would have wanted to.”

Once again, Kathryn was made aware of how rough Seven’s life must have been before joining their crew. Before she, herself, had been left behind by her supposed ‘friends’. This poor woman...no, that wasn’t right. This strong woman. This hurting woman. This amazing woman had a past that she couldn’t relate to. But by God, she was going to make sure her future was better. 

And from the look on the Doctor’s face, he was going to, too.

………………… …………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….

When the dust had settled on their disturbing conversation with Seven, the crew turned back to the main purpose of their beach trip: relaxation. 

Kathryn finished putting the sunscreen into her forehead until Tuvok promised her it was all rubbed in and was ‘properly protecting her from the harmful UV rays of the sun’ (his phrasing made her a _little_ anxious to get into the water, but watching Harry and Tom run in splashing and hollering had her nerves settled). 

And with that, the evening was set. Neelix and Kes were off on their walk along the beach, picking up interesting artefacts they found along the way. Tuvok, Seven, and the Doctor were hiding beneath the umbrella, one of them very disgruntled at having to do so and the other two enjoying it beyond belief. Tom and Harry were waist-high in the water, splashing each other with water-waves they created with their hands and arms. B’Elanna was on her back floating on the surface of the lake, her closed eyes blocked by sunglasses and her face mostly covered by a large hat. 

And Chakotay...Chakotay was standing by the shoreline, staring out at the water. 

He wore a pair of blue and black swim shorts and a small smile, and as Kathryn watched, he closed his eyes. At that moment, he looked so peaceful. Like the entire world was reduced to this lake, the soft summer wind, the warmth of the waning sun. Kathryn was mesmerized by the image of him standing there with the waves licking the tops of his bare feet. It was straight out of a movie. 

The part of the movie where she had to be a little bit brave.

She took a few steps forward until she was standing by his side. The water stretched out before them, rolling gently along in its rhythmic way. 

Chakotay looked up all of a sudden, caught Kathryn’s eye, and smiled that halfway smile of his.

“Have you ever been here before?”

“No, I haven’t.” She watched B’Elanna floating on the surface of the water, carefree and totally at peace with the watery world below her. “I’ve never been to a lake that was so salty.”

“I guess that’s why they call it ‘Salt Lake’.”

“I mean…” Kathryn laughed at herself. 

“I know.” Chakotay bit his bottom lip, then reached out his hand. “Do you want to try? To float, I mean.”

Kathryn took his hand, hoping he didn’t feel how hers was vibrating. How her pulse quickened as he squeezed her palm. How she gasped, slightly, as the water tickled her ankles.

“Lead the way,” she said.

And he did.

The water was cool, in the way that felt nice beneath the harsh sunlight. She was used to it within a few steps, letting the water kick up onto her upper legs as she ambled along rather awkwardly. Chakotay kept his hand held fast in hers, and squeezed it again as he came to a stop about three feet deep in the water.

“Do you trust me?”

Kathryn blushed slightly. 

“Of course.” She realized what he was saying as he set a hand beneath her back, and recovered her sense of humor in the process. “At least, I trust science.”

Chakotay laughed at her joke, and then focused on the task at hand.

“Okay. Lean back, and I’ll make sure you don’t sink.”

“Okay.”

Kathryn lifted one foot off of the ground, leaning back. She could feel his steady arms holding her up, ready to catch her if she should fall. The foot remaining on the ground shook as she tried to force it up, her brain not as trusting as her heart. Or, er, her motor functions not cooperating with her logical mind.

With a last surge of courage and force, she got her other leg up. Chakotay caught her legs on his left arm as his right continued to hold her upper body. Without thinking, Kathryn latched her arms around his neck, still not completely trusting the science she knew backward and forward. 

She laughed at herself, but found that he was not laughing at her. 

He was looking at her with that meditative, prayerful face he’d worn earlier as he stared out at the water. 

“I’m going to let go now, alright?”

“Wait!” She cried, cringing even as she continued to laugh at herself. In a few breaths, she calmed herself enough to nod in agreement. “Okay. I’m ready.”

Chakotay's hands slid out from underneath her. And there she was! Floating! On the surface of a lake in the middle of Utah!

If she could go back in time, just a month or so, and see herself now...this had started out as a work trip. A survey mission; that was all. Collect data, move on. Collect coordinates, move on. Take pictures, move on. Now...now she was lying on her back, shutting her eyes when the sun became too bright. Now there was a man standing beside her, ready to catch her if she started to fall. But she wouldn’t fall. 

Well, she wouldn’t sink. She’d certainly fallen already. She’d fallen the moment she saw him, hadn’t she? That didn’t make sense to her logical mind. Love at first sight was surely infatuation at first sight, right? But no...she really had fallen at that first meeting.

“I’m gonna join you,” he said.

It took her a moment to clarify what he meant. But then the water was kicking up, saltwater falling like rain onto her cheeks. And soon enough, he was floating beside her. He released a ridiculous laugh that she had never heard from him; the kind of tone that was so boyish and young and carefree. 

They stayed like that for a moment, heads resting back on the water as water licked their ears and chin. Kathryn closed her eyes and listened to her own breath mingling with his, two people in an expansive space, feeling like the only ones in the universe.

“Kathryn,” Chakotay said suddenly. “I’ve been meaning to say…”

Kathryn’s breath caught in her throat. When he didn’t continue, she encouraged, “Yes?”

Chakotay licked his lips.

“Right now...I think I’m happier than I’ve been in a long, long time. Actually...I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy before. Do you know what I mean?”

She tried to turn enough to see him, but not enough to tip herself over. She managed to glance his wet hair, sticking to his forehead. Managed to see his eyes struggling to find her own.

“Yes, Chakotay,” she sighed, turning to the sky with closed eyes and a wide smile. “I know _exactly_ what you mean.”

………………….. ……………………….. …………………… ………………………..

Night settled on their camp in the slow, wonderful way that June sunsets always were. The crew took turns washing off in the shower, changing out of their clothes, and simply standing on the beach to watch the colors of the sky fade from blues to oranges to pinks to deeper blues. 

At one point, as the sun was sinking just over the horizon of the lake, creating a glow that looked like a painting, Kathryn found herself alone on the beach a few feet away from Chakotay. They were both wrapped in their towels, hair still drying off after their long day in the water. Her body was chilled wherever it met the evening breeze, but utterly comfortable despite it all. She was tired and her eyes probably had bags under them from the boredom of this morning combined with the excitement of the afternoon. But she was still so, so happy. The happy tiredness of a day well-lived. Well spent.

“It’s a beautiful place,” Chakotay said. 

She found his eyes locked on the drapery of colors in the sky. Light blue, then yellows and pinks at the horizon. A dot or two of purple to complete the picture. 

“It’s almost a shame we have to leave it,” she added. 

And it really was. Of course there was her survey to get back to. And the Maquis had their own work to do. But she could be happy to live here forever. In this day. In this moment. In this life, with her crew combined with the Maquis. On their little bus, or right here on this beach that had quickly become their little slice of heaven. 

Kathryn turned, and found Chakotay already looking at her. Staring at her, his eyes glistening in the waning sunlight. Dots of light from the bus danced in his eyes like starlight.

“Chakotay,” she started, then stopped. What was she supposed to say? What do you say when you feel so much, but none of it feels right to be spoken aloud? How could words contain the sadness and the joy that she was feeling in this moment? 

“I know,” he said quietly.

Her eyes fixated on him, and she knew that he understood. Slowly, Chakotay turned to her and took a step forward. 

“As soon as I saw you, I felt a connection,” he said. His teeth chattered slightly, and Kathryn wasn’t sure if she should attribute it to the breeze or his emotion. “I...I was afraid to say anything. I’ve never felt this close to anyone, this fast.”

She nodded, and she hoped he saw. The sun was getting so low they could barely see each other. She kept her eyes fixed on his, unblinking; as if, if she closed her eyes this would all turn out to be a dream. 

“But standing here,” he said, taking another step forward, his arms still holding his towel wrapped around him in a way that perfectly framed his puppy-dog eyes. “With the sunset and the lake and...everything just feels right. And suddenly...suddenly, I’m not afraid anymore.”

Chakotay took another step forward. And now he was all Kathryn could see. Now their eyes were locked. Now Chakotay was reaching up, until his towel fell off of his shoulders and into the sand below.

His hands rose to cradle her cheeks, fingertips shaking slightly until he took hold of her face with gentle pressure. He leaned forward, his eyelids fluttering shut. Kathryn did the same. She tilted her chin, let her eyes slip closed.

When his lips touched hers, it felt like a firework went off in her chest. It felt like that ‘perfection’ Seven had mentioned sometimes. It felt like...it felt like being alive. Like dropping formalities and worries and just living in the moment. All that existed was his lips and her lips. His hands, touching her face; her hands, reaching around to touch the nape of his neck. 

Twenty yards away, or so, all of Kathryn’s best friends were on the bus playing music, laughing, having a good time. In the opposite direction, the sun was sinking over the horizon, never to make that exact sunset again. 

This was her life. And, in this moment (which was all that mattered to her right now), it was beautiful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't worry; the story's not quite finished yet! i have been having such a wonderful time writing this; i hope y'all have been enjoying it, too! can't wait to show you where this crew (and a certain captain and commander) go next.


	20. Ponderings in a Bus in Utah

Chapter 20  
"Ponderings in a Bus in Utah"

Kathryn opened her eyes and found the bus still bathed in the darkness of night. She knew she hadn’t slept long, and yet she also knew she didn’t need any more sleep. Her chest was so light; the smile instantaneous on her face as she sat up to look around herself. How could anyone sleep, when there was such a beautiful world to be lived in? How could anyone shut their eyes for more than a moment?

A few sunbeams faded through the dusty window behind her, bathing her fellow passengers; her friends; her family in its golden light. Tuvok and the Doctor were fast asleep in the two seats across from her. As she rested her head on the back of her seat, she heard Seven snoring on the opposite side. The sound was so...human. So gentle. And in this dazed, almost drunken state she’d woken up in, the soft murmurs of Seven’s still-sleeping voice made Kathryn want to weep at the beauty of it. 

The _humanness_ of it.

Kathryn shook her head, but couldn’t shake the smile from her lips. She was probably being ridiculous because of last night. It was like she was a teenager again; as if last night’s kiss was her first. And, in all honesty, it was her first in a long time; but by no means was it her _first_. So why was she acting so goofy? So sentimental and silly?

Kathryn rested back against the window, shutting her eyes so that she could really hear the sleeping people around her. Really feel the morning light and birds migrating across the sky and just feel...alive. For a moment, there was just her and this group of people who had so suddenly become her best friends. The world was just spinning and she was just living and drifting and-

“Kathryn,” Chakotay said, shaking her awake.

Damn; she’d fallen asleep, hadn’t she? Yep. And by the looks of it, everyone else was up and ready before she was. 

But she couldn’t even be frustrated at the irony of it. Because Chakotay’s smile was right there and he was saying something in that bantering way that the Maquis often spoke and it was directed at her. And they were a _thing_ now. She wasn’t sure exactly what to label their relationship, but it was different than friendship.

And Kathryn could not be happier about that.

“Morning sleepyhead,” Chakotay said, letting his hand stay on her shoulder for an extra moment longer than usual. 

“Morning,” she grunted, then gave him a smile as she stretched awake. “What time is it?”

“About 9 O’Clock. We’re about to head out. Did you want to get one last walk by the lakeside?”

Kathryn nodded. Of course she wanted to see the lake one last time. The lake was practically heaven. 

……………….. ………………………… ………………….. ………………….

Here in the daytime, Kathryn suddenly noticed the small pieces of discarded trash and plastic lining the shore. She saw the murkiness of the water and felt the sticky heat of the already-too-hot sun. It...wasn’t _exactly _as she remembered it being last night. But maybe that was for the best. If it really had been heaven, she would never have wanted to leave.__

__And maybe heaven hadn’t been this beach, per say. Maybe it had been the people she was with. That’s certainly how she felt, as she turned from the lake to look back at the few who had dared the heat to get a last look at the water. Tom, Chakotay, the Doctor, Kes...all of them were standing by the doors of the bus breathing in the salty air. Tired smiles lined their faces._ _

__Kathryn gave them each a smile of her own, and made her way back without delay._ _

__“We’d better get back out on the road,” she said, patting Tom and Chakotay on the shoulder as she passed between them._ _

__Tom gave her a puzzled expression. “Ready to go already?”_ _

__Kathryn turned just once more to the lake. They’d certainly made a few memories here. But it was time to make some new ones now._ _

__It was time to celebrate all they had learned here and carry those lessons and realizations forward._ _

__“I’m ready if all of you are,” she said._ _

__Chakotay and Tom raised their eyebrows at each other, then turned to Kathryn with bright smiles._ _

__“Well then,” Chakotay said. “Let’s hit the road.”_ _

__…………………… ………………………. …………………. …………………………_ _

__Throughout their journey through Utah, Kathryn was amazed by the enormity of the sky. The land stretched out before them as far as the eye could see; no buildings, no trees, not even a bush to hamper the view. There was only flat ground. There was only a wide, blue sky._ _

__There was only this bus. These people._ _

__And beside her, following her gaze carefully, was Chakotay._ _

__She didn’t remember when he’d maneuvered back here, using conversations with the crew as an excuse. But all of a sudden, he was there. And it was as if he’d always been there. As if right by her side was where he was meant to be, watching the green grass whiz past as Tom soared across the road like the driver’s seat was where _he_ was meant to be._ _

__“When you look out there,” Chakotay said quietly, “what do you see?”_ _

__Kathryn turned to him halfway. Her shoulder bumped into his, sending a spark of electricity through her system. There she was smiling again, just being near him. There she was flickering her eyes over his face, close enough to feel his breath tickle her cheek._ _

__“Right now, a lot of grass,” she joked._ _

__He chuckled, but then tilted his chin._ _

__“I mean,” he said, “you seem to have a way of looking at the world that’s...unique. What do you see here? In Utah?”_ _

__Kathryn looked out the window again. His question sounded difficult, but somehow she knew exactly how to answer. It was only a matter of wording it properly._ _

__“Right now, I see how big the world is. And how small we are in comparison. You see those rocks over there? Some of them are over two billion years old.”_ _

__She shook her head, an excitement building in her chest that she’d first noticed as a young girl exploring the forest for the first time. The excitement of knowing things and sharing them with someone you...someone you cared about._ _

__Kathryn turned to Chakotay to find him watching her intently, his lips turned in a small smile. The way his eyes were shining...it was like he’d never heard anything better than her sorry excuse for scientific poetry._ _

__“But at the same time,” she continued, looking around their bus. She settled her hands on her lap. “At the same time, I don’t really see us as small.”_ _

__“No?”_ _

__Chakotay’s hand drifted toward hers. Their fingers touched, gently. Then she turned her hand so that he could clasp her palm in his own._ _

__“No,” she murmured, in response to his almost-forgotten question._ _

__He looked down at their hands. That small smile grew, until it reached his downturned eyes._ _

__“That’s what I’ve learned, from being in the Maquis,” he said. “That sometimes the small things are the biggest thing of all.”_ _

__“Exactly.”_ _

__A moment of silence passed between them. Then, almost simultaneously, their heads lifted. They met each other’s eyes._ _

__And somehow Kathryn knew Chakotay was thinking the same thing that she was._ _

__“Chakotay...I’m not sure how we’ll make this work but-”_ _

__“-I know,” he finished._ _

__“I feel like...we’ve all gotten so close to each other. I can’t just go back to my life like this didn’t happen.” She shook her head. “But I also can’t abandon my other life, either. The one where I’m a scientist, and I have a mortgage to pay, and a car left on some godforsaken highway.”_ _

__They laughed a bit about the poor car; it was probably in a junkyard somewhere by now. But as they sobered, Chakotay fixed his gaze on Kathryn’s eyes._ _

__“We’ll figure it out. I know we will.” His smile widened, until it was infectious. “We _did_ get through a whole tornado together.”_ _

__“And a few robberies.”_ _

__“And a kidnapping attempt,” he added, cringing at the memory of Seska and her gang._ _

__Kathryn sighed, squeezing his hand. She looked around and found the crew arguing about what the best road trip food was, and where they could get some._ _

__And any weight that still resided in her chest was lifted. Because Chakotay was right; they would figure this out, just like everything else._ _

__Together._ _


	21. Last Night on the U.S.S. Party Bus

Chapter Twenty One  
"Last Night on the U.S.S. Party Bus"

Kathryn lay on her bus-seat bed and suddenly realized that it was comfortable. Well, that or she was so exhausted that anything would have felt comfortable. The past month of travelling had caught up to her at last, filling her mind with a fuzzy fog of tiredness. Today hadn’t helped. They’d spent the whole day out in the Nevada sunshine, surveying rocks and grasses and a few samples of the sandy soil. It was no wonder why she was so sleepy.

And yet, at the same time, Kathryn found that she didn’t want to go to sleep. As she lay staring at the back of the seat in front of her, trying to make patterns of the fabric tears and long-forgotten stains, her chest began to ache. Tomorrow would be their last full day together. Then it was on to California. The day after tomorrow, she’d be staring out at the Golden Gate Bridge, safe at last in San Francisco.

She should have been excited. Glad, that their journey had been successful. Happy to make it back to ‘civilization’ and have some closure to this mission of exploration. Satisfied in a job well done.

But right now, all Kathryn felt was sadness. It gnawed at her, hurting worse than all of the aches and bruises she’d sustained in these past weeks. Her stomach ached so badly she wondered if she would ever eat again.

She would stay in touch with the Maquis, that was sure. But a nagging sensation in the back of her mind reminded her that long distance relationships ever worked out how you intended them to. Over time, their texts and phonecalls would become less frequent. Eventually, she’d speak to them once or twice a year; maybe get the basic gist of what they had done in the past six months. Birthdays and housing information and all those other things that didn’t really tell you anything more than tax information could provide.

These people, on this bus, would never be together again; certainly not like this. And that absolutely, horrendously, sucked.

Kathryn turned over until her face was pressed into the back of her own seat. Then she flipped onto her back to look at the ceiling of the bus. It loomed up there, somehow appearing to drift closer and closer to her eyes as she watched. Maybe it was the exhaustion. She was too tired to sleep; too sad to dream.

What perfect ironies these were. 

With a sigh of irritation, Kathryn sat up in her makeshift bed. The bus was very quiet; more than usual. Today had certainly taken its toll on the crew, even the undefeatable Maquis. Peering across the aisle, Kathryn found the Doctor deep asleep, wrapped snugly beneath a large quilt. A couple seats away, Kes was covered even more completely. Her feet stuck out just slightly at the end of her blanket.

Sitting back in her seat, she looked straight across herself and found Tuvok slowly sitting up. He met her eyes across the darkness, and shared a small smile in the glow of the portable light sitting on the storage boxes behind him.

Kathryn wrapped herself in her blanket and shifted closer to him, until her feet touched the cold floor of the aisle.

“You can’t sleep either?”

Tuvok shook his head. 

“I find that the closer we get to San Francisco, the more difficult it is to find rest,” he explained in a quiet voice. “I have attempted to meditate, but it is of little use.”

“Are you nervous? About our research, and the presentation we have to do?”

He frowned slightly, then shook his head. “I do not believe I am. However, we have been separated from our normal lives for so long that returning to them causes its own form of anxiety.”

“I know what you mean.” Kathryn looked to the floor. She wanted to say something, but Tuvok would probably think she was being ridiculous. He’d definitely think it was illogical, at the very least. 

But it was so late, and Kathryn was so tired. And nighttime has a way of bringing out the truth; as if the things that can’t be said in the light of day are easier to say in front of the moon. Like you’re not being judged as harshly. Like you’re not in front of a spotlight.

“Tuvok,” Kathryn began, forcing her eyes to meet his as her cheeks burned in the privacy of the shadows, “Have you noticed...it’s like this trip took us into a different universe almost. My ‘other life’ feels like...I don’t know. Like a memory. Or a dream.”

Tuvok nodded slightly, alleviating some of Kathryn’s worries.

“I have felt that sensation before. When my son was in middle school, we went on a five day camping trip. We fell very quickly into a routine and, for a time, it felt like we had always lived in the meadow where our tent was placed.”

Kathryn smiled at the image of Tuvok and his son. She’d met his children on a few occasions, and each time had been a pleasure. 

“The only problem is,” she said, her smile sinking back into a frown, “I don’t seem to want to wake up from this dream.”

Her voice carried louder than she meant, and she cringed at the effect of it cutting through the air as it did. If any of the Maquis were still awake, they definitely heard her. 

That was alright. It was only the embarrassment of intimacy. Not the worst problem to have, certainly.

Tuvok sat up straighter, shifting closer to the edge of his own seat. He folded his hands together on his lap.

“We still do not know what the future holds,” he said. “It is possible that our research will be deemed incomplete. Or, indeed, that we will be sidetracked before the end of tomorrow’s survey. It is best to live in the present moment.”

“But what if I still feel the same way when we get to San Francisco? I can’t abandon my work, or my home...but I also don’t want to leave this place, either.”

Tuvok was silent for a long moment. He shifted in and out of the light, ultimately ending up leaned forward, close to Kathryn, hovering over the central aisle. 

“As I stated, it is best to live in the present moment. When the moment of decision comes, you will know what to do.”

Kathryn nodded, taking him at his word. He had never once told her a lie, and she had never faulted when in his counsel. So reason would say that he could be trusted now. 

“And Kathryn,” Tuvok said suddenly, a rare, gentle smile reaching his eyes. “Thank you for inviting me on this expedition. It has been a once in a lifetime experience.”

She laughed at his choice of words. 

“It sure has. Not always for the best, I’m afraid.”

His smile faltered as he tilted his head.

“On the contrary,” he insisted, “I would not have changed this experience, or traded it for anything other than it was.”

Tears blinked into Kathryn’s eyes. Weeks of stress, constant worrying, kidnappings, robberies, tornadoes, seedy bars, weather that threatened heat exhaustion, detours hundreds of miles off of their initial plans...and yet Tuvok was not furious at her? He was happy? And so was she? And, if she asked, she knew Harry and Tom would feel the same?

There was, perhaps, no better feeling for a leader. A ‘Captain’, as they called her. To have a trip look like a disaster on paper, and yet be declared a success by everyone concerned. What a beautiful chaos this journey had been.

“Goodnight, Tuvok,” she said, not trusting her voice to say anything more.

“Goodnight, Captain Janeway.”

She smirked at the nickname, but honestly that was what did her in. As she lay back, she let the tear fall down her cheek. It met her lips as she turned to face that ratty old seat cover in front of her. And in the sacred, quiet darkness of the bus that had become her home, Kathryn let more happy tears fall.

………………………. ………………. ………………… ……………….. …………………

“Captain?” Tom asked, turning his head back until Chakotay opened his mouth to protest. “Should I find us somewhere to stay in Reno, or did you want to go into California?”

Kathryn’s heart broke to hear the word ‘California’ (an irony, since as a child in Indiana she had dreamed of seeing the west coast someday). Surely they couldn’t be there already? They’d only travelled...okay they’d travelled 200 miles today. It was only about three O’Clock; they could definitely fit in another survey. But that would mean they’d be 100 miles closer to San Francisco.

100 miles closer to saying goodbye.

“Let’s stay here for the night,” she said, resting her hand on the back of Chakotay’s seat as she stared out the front window. “If we keep going, we’ll be too tired to celebrate.”

Chakotay turned sharply up to her, a smile playing at his lips.

“Celebrate, Captain?”

“Yes, Commander,” her eyes twinkled as she set a hand on his shoulder. “I was going to keep it a secret for a little while longer but...as a token of our gratitude, my group would like to host a celebration. A toast to the good times we had together.”

“And the not-so-good times,” Chakotay smirked.

Kathryn patted his arm. 

“Those, too.”

………………….. ……………………. ………………………. ……………………..

Neelix, Harry, and Tom stepped up onto the bus with packages and packages of good-smelling, mouth-watering food. They stacked them all in the back few rows of seats, stuffing liters of soda in between supply crates and medical kits. Tuvok raised an eyebrow at the precarious nature of all of this ‘very necessary’ celebratory food, especially given Tom’s habit of reckless driving. But the men assured him that everything was perfectly safe and ready for anything.

Kathryn found Tuvok’s unimpressed expression and set a hand on Tom’s shoulder.

“How far _are_ we transporting all of this?” she asked.

He shrugged, glancing to Chakotay and Neelix for help. “Wherever we want to have this party. I’ve never been to Reno, so I don’t really know what’s around here.”

Neelix shook his head.

“To be honest, I’ve never been here either.”

“I have,” Seven said, appearing so suddenly that Neelix jumped. She turned to Kathryn with a disdainful expression. “There are no known party locations in the vicinity.”

“None?” Kathryn questioned.

She tried a smile, but Seven shook her head very seriously. Turning to Chakotay, Kathryn cringed. 

“Well,” he said, looking over the party food with hopeful eyes, “why don’t we have it here? On the bus?”

“On the bus?” Kathryn repeated. “Are you sure? We wouldn’t want to-”

“Kathryn,” he sighed with a warm smile. “We’ve been through too much to start worrying about a little soda on the fabric.”

Her head drooped down as she grinned. When she brought it back up to face him, she could hardly contain her laugh. “I suppose you’re right.”

Tom jumped in with a face as bright and excitable as a puppy dog.

“So we’re having the party here?”

Kathryn nodded. “It would seem so.”

Tom clapped, then maneuvered his way through the aisle to get back to the driver’s seat. When he reached it at last, he turned the engine over and called, “I’ll find us the perfect spot. Hold on!”

Chakotay briefly met Kathryn’s eyes before the bus lurched forward and they were forced to grab onto each other for dear life. She pulled him down into her seat, mindful of the wary look in his eyes, and held onto his arm as he settled.

“If we ever travel as a group again,” Chakotay said as the bus rolled onward, “Tom Paris is _not_ driving.”

She laughed, touching her forehead into his shoulder. “Deal.”

“He can stay on as our go-to mechanic. Or...what other job should we give him?”

Kathryn looked fondly at the back of Tom’s head at the other side of the bus.

“How about navigator?”

“Navigator...works for me.” Chakotay gave her a smile. “Just as long as he does _not_ touch the wheel.”

“Deal.”

She shook his hand in a mock-contract. But silently, she hoped that they got a chance to make it formal. She wanted to stay with him so badly. Wanted this merry band of travellers to go all over the country, if they could. Studying science or saving lives or doing a little bit of both. That sounded like...well, it sounded like the best life ever imagined.

“We’re here!” Tom shouted, pulling the bus up to a stop. 

They were in a parking lot, at the top of an outlook straight from a movie set. Surrounding them were hills taller than the one they were one; jagged red rocks with rough edges and roughed terrain. Below spanned roads and highways, some filled with cars and others desolate. It was...it was like being everywhere and being nowhere. Being surrounded and utterly alone. Being in the city and the countryside.

Kathryn’s fingers intertwined with Chakotay’s as they gazed out her window.

“It’s perfect, Tom,” she said, loud enough for him to hear.

“It is,” Chakotay agreed.

………………….. ……………………. …………………….. …………………………

Partying on the bus had been an idea borne from genius.

Harry, Tom, and B’Elanna had successfully connected their phones with an enhanced version of the bus’ radio (improved by B’Elanna throughout the evening, with some discarded wires, power supplies, and disemboweled stereo equipment). The sound was wonderful. Music bounced off of the metal casing of the bus, creating acoustics that even the Doctor found impressive. 

At about nine O’Clock, Kathryn found herself kneeling on her usual seat, taking a glass of champagne from Neelix’ hand as he smiled and offered her cheers. The atmosphere of the room was giddy, and excited. Like this was New Year’s or something like it. Like this wasn’t a party put together in the past few hours, but rather a celebration that had been carefully designed and anticipated for months.

She found Tuvok in his usual seat across from her, holding his own glass of champagne. He stared at the bubbles rising to the surface with a curious expression. Kathryn couldn’t help but smile as she stepped closer to him, holding her own glass outstretched before herself.

“Cheers, Tuvok,” she said. She clinked his glass with her own, throwing him suddenly out of his introspective gaze. “This time tomorrow, we’ll have completed our survey.”

“It is quite an accomplishment,” he said, taking a quick sip of his drink. “Congratulations, Doctor Janeway.”

“And you, Doctor Tuvok.”

Beside her, handing off his phone to Harry, Tom rolled his eyes with a laugh. “If I hear the word Doctor one more time,” he joked. 

“Ooh!” Harry gasped, tapping Tom rapidly on the arm. “We have to do this one.”

Tom looked at the phone screen and gasped with a wide grin. He passed his own drink off to Neelix, still standing passing out everyone else’s in the crowded space of the back of the bus. Then, Tom and Harry both pressed something on the screen together and shared a giddy smile.

Kathryn double checked Harry’s glass as he was distracted with the music, making sure it was root beer and not something else. He _was_ still too young to drink, especially during his internship. Luckily, he did only have soda in his glass and Kathryn was able to back off to watch him and Tom with a smile.

The music swelled, and suddenly Tom and Harry were banging their fists on the crates beside them. It was a rhythmic beat that Kathryn, and probably everyone else on this small bus, could feel in her bones.

Harry and Tom sang, “ _Soon may the Wellerman come, to bring us sugar and tea and rum. One day-_ ”

Kathryn turned away with a shaking head and a smile. Their voices were so loud, as was the music. And yet...God, did she love them for it. They were having so much fun. Such good friends, already. It was like they’d known each other all their lives.

She set down her champagne fluke and took a few steps down the central aisle. B’Elanna was there, watching Tom and Harry’s ‘performance’ with almost the same expression Kathryn had worn. 

“Hello B’Elanna,” Kathryn said. “Congratulations on keeping this bus going. I know it hasn’t been easy.”

B’Elanna waved her off with a smile. “This old bus will outlive us all,” she insisted. “I’m just glad we were able to get you through your survey without needing any major repairs. That was a miracle.”

“Nah,” Kathryn said, “That was you. You’re very talented, B’Elanna.”

“Thank you, Captain.”

Kathryn patted B’Elanna on the shoulder, then continued on. Kes was in the next seat, guarding the snack table. She offered Kathryn the plate of baby carrots and hummus as she passed by.

“Try some of these, Captain. They really are delicious.”

“Health food? At a party?” Kathryn gave Kes a smile as she took one of the carrots. “Now I know you’re a medic.”

Kes smiled at the joke. “I’m just doing my job.”

“And you do it very well.” Kathryn took a bite of the carrot. She made a face that wasn’t even an exaggeration, though it probably looked like one. “Oh this _is_ delicious. Where did you get this hummus?”

Kes shrugged, “I’m not sure. Neelix found it in one of the stores in town.”

“Tell him to let me see the receipt later,” she insisted. “I want to know where I can get more of this.”

“Will do, Captain.”

Kathryn beamed at the nickname. It had spread to everyone so quickly; her own nickname, given by Harry, her own intern. It was all so glorious. So friendly. Her little family that lived on a bus and called each other nicknames that meant so much more than what they sounded like.

“Smile!” trilled a sudden voice. It was followed swiftly by a click and a flash of light.

The Doctor, holding a camera directly toward Kathryn’s face. She laughed out loud just imagining what that picture must have looked like; her grinning wide with a carrot in her hand. But before she could see it, Seven was stepping in to grab the camera from the Doctor’s hands.

“The lighting in here is inadequate for proper photography,” she said. “You would benefit from enlarging the aperture.”

“I know!” the Doctor insisted, tugging the camera back toward himself. “Seven, don’t worry. The pictures will turn out fine.”

Seven raised an eyebrow. 

“If you are sure.”

“I am.” The Doctor sighed, his lips turning into a gentle smile. “There is one thing that you can help me with.”

“What is that?” Seven asked. 

“I want a picture of everyone on the crew, but I don’t have one of you yet.”

Seven glanced from the Doctor to Kathryn, then back to the Doctor with furrowed brows.

“I am not officially a part of the Maquis, nor the science crew.”

The Doctor lowered the camera. His eyes were soft as they gazed at Seven.

“Of course you are,” he said. “Commander Chakotay doesn’t let just anyone stay on his bus.”

Seven raised an eyebrow, but Kathryn knew, somehow, that she was starting to believe him. Her eyes softened; her stance relaxed slightly.

“I am a part of this collective?” she asked. Her voice was so quiet and unsure that Kathryn’s heart almost ached.

She said, “Yes, Seven. You are.”

Seven looked at Kathryn closely, then turned to the Doctor. She nodded to him, standing up straight.

“You may take your portrait,” she said, forcing her voice back into its usual stoicness.

The Doctor raised his camera. And as he pointed it at Seven, she curled her lips into a smile. A real, honest, bright smile. Kathryn waited until the picture was taken, then stepped between them to get to the front of the bus. 

She wiped at a tear that had found its way into her eyes, then looked around this portion of the bus. It was remarkably quiet up here, though it couldn’t have been more than twenty feet from the blaring music. Probably another feat of engineering from B’Elanna; keep the front of the bus in a completely different mood than the back, just through acoustics. It was remarkable.

A single silhouette stood in front of the front window, leaning halfway on the driver’s seat. Kathryn recognized the figure instantly.

Chakotay.

He was framed by the distance mountains, still shining in front of the setting sun. It was a gorgeous sight to behold. The sky was dark in most places, a few stars beginning to peek out from behind the blanket of sky up above. As her eyes adjusted, Kathryn saw more and more, until Chakotay was framed not only by mountains but by a brilliant display of outer space.

Earth and space. Another beautiful combination of opposites in this strange, wonderful land. 

“Enjoying the party?” she asked, careful not to startle him as she approached.

He turned halfway to her, then back out to the mountains. Kathryn set a hand on his shoulder, then looked at his face. His lips were set in a frown, jaw set. His eyes were almost unblinking as they stared out at the land and the sky in front and above him.

“What’s wrong?”

He looked down slightly, smiling a sad smile toward the floor.

“The woman I love is leaving tomorrow,” he said plainly.

Kathryn’s heart skipped a beat. Love? They hadn’t used that word yet. But it fit so perfectly that it seemed natural. Inevitable. Perfect. 

“And I don’t know if I’ll ever see her again,” he finished.

Kathryn let his words sit in the air for a long moment. She didn’t know exactly what to say. She’d had the same fears as him, for so, so long now. But now that the words were out there...suddenly their problem didn’t seem so impossible. Suddenly she had a revelation.

She said, “I don’t think you need to worry about that.”

He turned to her sharply. “Oh?”

With a smile, she patted him on the shoulder and looked into his eyes. 

“I'll explain tomorrow.” She glanced back at their crew, then tilted her head. “Come on, let’s go join the party. One last hurrah for the Maquis-science crew.”

He smiled, setting his hand on hers.

“We have to find a better name than that.”

“You’re right about that.” She took a step back, pulling his hand with her.

He followed, getting to his feet and slowly turning his body away from the window. Toward her own. He looked back at the crew, now all dancing to a new song that Kathryn couldn’t quite place. B’Elanna had rigged the lights to emit multiple colors, and they shined and danced along with the crew.

Chakotay laughed, squeezing Kathryn’s hand in his own.

“How about ‘U.S.S. Party Bus’?” 

She smiled wide.

“Sounds about right.”

They watched their combined crew for another long moment, both in complete admiration. Joy. Pride. There weren’t enough words to properly describe the feeling. 

Chakotay turned to Kathryn and met her eyes again. She could swear his eyes went on forever; she could get lost in them for the rest of her life if she wasn’t careful. And suddenly both of his hands were intertwined with hers. Their bodies were almost touching as they stood chest to chest.

“Well done, Kathryn,” he said, hardly above a whisper. “I think we did it.”

“You know, Chakotay...I think we really did.”

They shared a small smile. Then, together, they leaned forward. Chakotay’s lips brushed against her own; a chaste kiss and then they were parted again.

She opened her eyes to look into his own again. His were still closed, his hands separating from hers. He touched her cheek and it felt like lightning. His fingertips pressed into her cheek; her jaw. And her eyes were closing again. Their lips were touching again, pressing together much more deeply this time.

And that kiss by the lake was nothing compared to this. That was a vacation. This was paradise. Here, on this bus. Surrounded by people she loved. Her friends. Her family. Chakotay. Kathryn ran her fingers through his short hair, pulling him closer to herself as they continued to kiss. 

Kathryn’s chest no longer ached. She no longer felt nostalgic. Because this moment was all she could feel. This moment was all that there was. And something told her that she was going to have a lot more moments like this in the future.

Something told her that the U.S.S. Party bus wasn’t quite finished yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be the final one, I'm afraid :(
> 
> Thank you so so so so much for all of the support on this journey! It's been so much fun to write and you all have been so kind. I hope you enjoy the last moments of this story :)

**Author's Note:**

> I am so so excited to continue writing this. I hope that you are enjoying it so far! Let me know what you think in the comments; even the smallest word had the biggest impact. Thank you!!


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